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“We’re not getting a cat,” Adam said.
Olive considered arguing. Cats were great. The kittens she had seen were adorable. She had been convinced that even Adam would think so, once he’d gotten a good look at them – or rather, once she had talked him into changing his mind.
It wasn’t as if they didn’t have plenty of space for a pet in their apartment (and that was something Olive was still getting used to: their apartment).
On the other hand, “Okay.”
Adam scrunched up his face in a suspicious kind of way. That was also adorable. Possibly even more adorable than kittens. “Okay?”
“If you don’t want to get a cat, we’re not getting a cat,” Olive said.
Adam seemed to need a moment to digest this statement. “Really?”
“I’m not unreasonable,” Olive said. A cat wasn’t like a pumpkin spice latte. Or a unicorn plushie. Or a Star Wars poster with the top hundred best droid characters.
“Debatable,” Adam said.
Olive frowned at him. She felt that, as she had after all been extremely reasonable and mature and not the least bit smart-ass, the least Adam could do was appreciate it. Maybe even buy her something with a lot of sugar and food coloring.
Adam sighed. “You want to get a cat. You like cats.”
“Yes. That’s why I started out this conversation with ‘Adam, I like cats and I would like to get one’. And then you said no, and I said that I was okay with that.”
“So we’re not getting a cat?” Adam prodded. “You’re not getting a cat?”
“I’m not going to move out just so I can get a cat. You’re more important to me than that.” She beamed at him.
“Thank you?” Adam still didn’t seem convinced that he was getting off so easily, but then he seemed to rally and said, “Thank you, Olive,” with much more conviction this time around. “I appreciate you respecting my wishes in this matter.”
Olive kept beaming. “You’re very welcome.”
Adam stared at her in silence for a few seconds. His expression was very neutral but Olive could tell there was a lot of thinking going on. “I kind of expected you to argue more.”
“I decided not to. A cat is a living creature after all. It’s not fair to put it in a home where it’s not welcome.”
Another few seconds of staring. “That’s very mature of you.”
“I know,” Olive said.
“I … never gave much serious thought to getting a cat. Or any kind of pet,” Adam said. “I didn’t feel like I needed one, so I just … didn’t. It’s not like I actually hate cats.”
“That’s good to hear.”
Adam made his scrunchy face again. “If you really want to get one, I guess I’m okay with it.”
Olive managed not to look like an evil mastermind whose plan had gotten together perfectly. Or laugh an evil laugh. Or look even the tiniest bit smug. “Really?”
Adam sighed. “Really.”