Adam's Big Move

I was sitting on Heather’s couch and we had been arguing for nearly an hour. I was so over this conversation. To me, the decision had been made but she wanted to make sure I was making it for the “right” reasons.

“Adam, you’ve been wavering on moving back here for months and suddenly Molly calls you and tells you Faith needs you and all of a sudden you change your tune? Do you honestly expect me to believe that it has nothing to do with her?” Heather was standing with her hands on her hips, seemingly to take a break from pacing across the living room.

I sighed.

I’d broken up with Serena about a month after we started dating. She was a flirt and we weren’t that compatible but we were able to keep things professional. I was laid off about four months ago due to cutbacks and since I was one of the last people hired I ended up getting the boot. It sucked and I had no luck finding another job in Ohio. Heather and I had reconnected while she was in Cincinnati for a work conference. We met up for some drinks in the lobby of her hotel and things went on from there. Heather was understanding when I lost my job and frequently came to visit me while I was in Cincinnati. I wasn’t sure, at first, how serious I wanted things to be with her so I tried to keep her at a distance but, eventually, she broke that down and I really do care for her. I might even love her.

When she started suggesting I move in with her I wasn’t sure. I made several trips to visit her in the city to think about it but I just didn’t think it was the right time for us to move in together. Maybe it was commitment issues or fear that I’d have my heartbroken but things just…didn’t feel right. I tried to explain the way I felt the best I could and she tried to understand but I knew it bothered her, deep down. I hated that but I didn’t want to rush things or do something I wasn’t ready for or didn’t think we were ready for.

“I wasn’t wavering on moving back here, I wasn’t sure if we should live together. The fact that you don’t trust me or trust that I’ve made this decision based on what I think is best for us shows that I was right and we aren’t ready to live together.”

She shook her head.

“Heather,” I stood up, took her hand, and lead her to the couch so we could sit, “I was coming here before I even knew about Faith’s fiancé dying. I scheduled this trip over a month ago specifically so I could look for apartments. You KNOW this.”

“So…was moving down the hall from her also a coincidence?” She sniffed.

“Yeah,” I said honestly, “I booked a showing for that apartment two weeks ago. Faith moved after we broke up, I had no idea where she was living until Molly told me the day after I paid the down payment for it.”

This was true. I had been in town for a few days before showing up at Faith’s door. My realtor had shown me the apartment two doors down from Faith’s and I had no idea she lived so close. I looked at four other apartments but ended up liking that one the most before I even knew that Faith lived there. Heather had even come with me to three of the showings and agreed, based on the pictures I’d taken, that the one in Faith’s building was the best one I’d seen. I put a down payment on it and scheduled a move-in date literally the day before Molly had called telling me everything that had happened. I genuinely had no idea but even I could see how that would seem impossible, there was no way I was going to convince my jealous girlfriend that that is what happened.

“Does Faith know you’re going to be her new neighbor?” She asked.

“Uh…I haven’t told her yet.” I said.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure how to tell Faith. I wasn’t scheduled to move in for at least another week, so I had time to figure it out, the bigger issue, though, was Heather.

“Look,” I said pushing my hand through her hair, “I know you don’t like how any of this went down, and I get it. But you have NOTHING to worry about. I am not interested in Faith the way you think I am. I’m with you, completely.”

“Not enough to move in with me, apparently.”

“The last girlfriend I lived with tried to kill me…it’s…it’s a lot for me.”

She sighed and nodded.

“Yeah, I get it. But…Adam, are you SURE you’re really moving here to be closer to me and not to be closer to Faith?”

“Yes.” I stared into her eyes to show her I wasn’t lying, “Moving back here was always the plan. After I lost my job, I realized that I was meant to be here. With you. It’s time to stop messing around.”

She smiled at me and hugged me.

“I told your father you got an apartment. He’s looking forward to introducing you to everyone at the firm. I’m so proud of you for taking his job offer.”

I hugged her back but didn’t say anything. I did want to move back to the city and I wanted to be closer to her but one of the reasons I was wavering about moving back was because I knew I’d have to take my dad up on a standing job offer he constantly brought up. It had nothing to do with journalism but it was a steady paycheck and I haven’t been able to cut it as a journalist, so it seemed like my best option. Plus I can always keep looking for an opening on a paper somewhere while I settle back into the city.

“Well, while you’re staying with me and before you have to go back to get your stuff, we might as well make the most of it, right?” Heather smiled and started kissing me.

She stood up and took her shirt off, grabbed my hand, and walked me into her bedroom.