“You’re obsessed with control.”
I almost smiled at the irony.
“Who decides how much money gets transferred to my personal account?”
She said nothing.
“Who decides what I’m allowed to spend without discussion?”
Silence.
“Who controls the combined savings?”
“Someone has to manage it.”
“Who?”
“I would.”
I nodded.
“Then nothing has changed.”
Lauren looked genuinely stunned.
“I apologized.”
“You apologized for getting angry.”
“I apologized for throwing your things.”
“You still believe the demand that caused the argument was reasonable.”
“It was a financial plan.”
“It was unilateral control.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Oh my God.”
And there it was.
Not resolution.
Exhaustion.
Contempt.
Six years of marriage compressed into two people standing in a garage realizing they no longer agreed on what the argument was even about.
Lauren looked toward the house.
“So what happens now?”
Finally.
A useful question.
“I need time away.”
“Fine.”
She glanced toward Melissa.
“I’ll stay with her for a few days.”
Melissa’s face changed in a way that suggested the exact number of days had not yet been negotiated.
Lauren continued.
“Then you’ll calm down and I’ll come home.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
She frowned.
“What?”
“You are not just coming back in a few days and pretending Thursday never happened.”