She told me that staying where we were would eventually make her irrelevant. The wellness market was moving quickly, and the partnerships she wanted required proximity to people who already had established audiences. She spoke about having outgrown our surroundings and needing a partner who was excited to take risks rather than frightened of them. I reminded her that I had just accepted the lieutenant promotion, something I had worked toward through years of training and performance reviews. Transferring to another department would not guarantee a comparable position, and some departments had their own requirements that could set me back considerably. I said I was willing to consider a move in the future but could not abandon the promotion without understanding what I was giving up.
Jade leaned against the counter and looked at me with an expression I had come to dread. It was not anger exactly. It was disappointment performed so completely that I could almost feel myself becoming the person she was disappointed in. She asked whether I had ever considered what it felt like to support somebody who believed more in procedure than possibility.
I told her that procedure was what allowed possibility to become something we could actually afford. She said I was reducing her dream to a spreadsheet. I said a dream that involved two people deserved an honest conversation about the costs to both of them.
We went back and forth for an hour without becoming any closer to an agreement. She wanted to move within three months. I wanted us to wait at least a year, build savings, and understand her actual business revenue rather than projected sponsorships. When I suggested we could spend weekends scouting neighborhoods and speaking with people in the industry, she accused me of dragging my feet because I was threatened by the thought of her earning more than I did. That allegation hurt in a way I did not immediately show. I had spent eighteen months covering extra expenses precisely because I wanted her to succeed, and she had turned that support into evidence of an insecurity I did not recognize in myself.
At one point she asked what I would do if she decided to move without me. I said I did not know, because I genuinely did not. She stared at me as though the only acceptable answer would have been that I would follow her anywhere without question. I asked if she had already made a decision.
She said I was putting her on trial. Then she carried her laptop into the spare bedroom and closed the door. The groceries remained half unpacked until I put them away myself.
Sunday was polite and uncomfortable. We made breakfast, avoided the subject, and watched a show neither of us was really following. She spent most of the afternoon editing footage from a workout with Remy. I asked whether she wanted to take a walk before sunset, and she said she had a deadline.