As Bortnik and Gaylord spoke with Metro Weekly, just before the new year, they were coming to the close of one such trip, which saw the couple traveling the United States, from the Grand Canyon to Gaylord's hometown, Schenectady, N.Y. With their time together coming to an end -- for now -- the two have to steel their resolve ahead of the inevitable good-bye. ''When I go back to Belarus, I have, like, two weeks of depression,'' says Bortnik. They are, however, getting better at living this particular situation. ''Now I have so many things to do when I go home, which is good. I won't have too much time to be depressed.'' The same feelings strike Gaylord shortly after his partner leaves. ''There's definitely a feeling of depression each time. It's particularly bad when something happens -- good or bad -- that you'd want to share with a partner. You want somebody to talk to.'' It's not a feeling either are familiar with, says Gaylord'' ''We're not depressed people. We usually have a lot of fun.'' To ease the separation, they e-mail each other daily, and phone a couple times a month. And they've not had to go more than about three months without meeting since the initial introduction in Mexico. That's not to say it hasn't been complicated and expensive. Read more From D.C., with Love Bi-national gay couple tackles borders and barriers to stay together, (photo: Metro Weekly, Todd Franson)

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