A week after the whole drama with Charlie, the school had a half-day because of some conference that most of the staff had to attend. Being a teacher of sports, it wasn't relevant to me, and I didn't have to attend so I headed home, planning to catch up on some forgotten housework and finish marking some student's assignments. I was very confused, to say the least, to see Imogen's car sat in the driveway when I got home, and I called out to her as I went into the house.
"Imogen? Are you here?"
"Kitchen!" She called back. I dropped my things on the sofa as I made my way to her.
"Hey. Why are you home?"
"It's not for long. I had some time between meetings and thought I'd come home to have lunch with you." I smiled and stepped into her embrace.
"That's so sweet of you. I thought you'd come home sick or something."
"You know I never get sick." She teased, kissing me. I just laughed and let go of her.
"So, what's for lunch, then?"
"I hadn't actually thought that far ahead. I should have grabbed something from the store on the way home, shouldn't I?"
"I'm sure we can find something in the house," I replied, going over to the refrigerator. "How much time do you have? I could whip up that warm chicken salad you like."
"Sounds good. I'll help to make it quicker." With a smile, I passed her the ingredients for the salad. Together, we made quick work of it, and we were soon sat at the table to eat.
"So, what's on the agenda for the rest of the day then?" I asked.
"A couple more meetings and a final review of next month's layout. Then I'm home again."
"Sounds like it'll be a late night." I pouted. I hated when she had to work late and missed having dinner with Abby and me.
"Hopefully not." She assured me with a smile. "These meetings are only short ones. We're discussing the New York office again." She started chewing on her bottom lip then, looking like a guilty child.
"What? What's wrong?"
"Um, well, the reason we're having more meetings about the New York office is that the Editor over there is about to be fired so they're looking for a new one."
"So?" I didn't understand why she was looking so guilty.
"I'm their top pick."
"That's ridiculous. You live here. You can't be Editor of the New York office if you live halfway across the world from it." I laughed but stopped when I saw that she wasn't laughing too. "You can't be serious?"
"Nick, it's a huge opportunity. And an honour that the magazine thinks I'm good enough."
"Our life is here, though. I've finally got my dream job. Abby is happy at school. Why would you want to uproot our lives like that?"
"I don't know, I..." She sighed and took hold of my hands, making me look her in the eye. "Like you said, you've got your dream job. This is mine."
"Imogen, I love you. And I want you to be happy. But if we move across the world, I don't know that I'll be happy. And I don't know if Abby will be either."
"Abby is seven years old. She'll adapt quickly. And I'm sure we'll find you a job that you love just as much. Imagine all the sports possibilities over there. The short trips we could take if we lived in America."
"It sounds to me like you've already decided you want to go."
"I don't even know if they'll actually give me the job. But I'd love it if they did. Nick, this is everything I've worked for my whole career." I sighed and squeezed her hands. I didn't want to crush her dreams, but I knew if I ended up not loving it over there, she'd feel so guilty and it would ruin it for all of us.
"Can I have some time to think? It's a lot to take in at once."
"Of course, you can. Take as much time as you need." She kissed my forehead and stood up. "I've got to get going again. But when I get home, we can talk more, okay?"
"Okay. Just don't go making any rash decisions."
"I won't. Promise. I love you."
"I love you too." I waved to her from the front porch after kissing her goodbye and headed back into the house when she was gone, intending to get started on what I'd planned to do in the first place.
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An hour later, nothing had been done and I was sat in the living room on my laptop, looking at places we could live in New York when my phone rang.
"Hello?" I answered distractedly, my attention focused on a small two-bedroom apartment in the Brooklyn.
"Nick? You okay? You sound upset. Imogen called and explained what happened." My mum's voice echoed down the line, bringing me back to reality.
"Hi, mum. I'm okay. I'm just processing."
"Why don't you tell me what you're thinking? It might help to have a neutral voice in this."
"We're happy with our life here, mom. Abby's just getting settled at school. I don't want to uproot her life now. And my job, you know how hard I worked for it. It'd be like giving up if I left. On top of all that, I know Imogen. I know she's going to blame herself if I end up in a job I'm not happy in. Not that it won't be true, but I don't want her feeling guilty about it."
"How about - and don't take this the wrong way - but maybe you could try long distance. I know you two are always together and it'd be hard for you. But this way you can keep your job, Abby's life is stable, and Imogen can follow her dream.
"You think that could be a solution?" As much as I hated being away from Imogen, my mum's suggestion actually sounded like it could work.
"At the very least, she'll find out whether she loves the job enough for it to be permanent. And it'll give you more time to really think about what you'd do if you do end up moving."
"Mum, you're a genius." I proclaimed, suddenly a lot more positive about everything. "I'll discuss it with Imogen when she gets home."
"Glad I could help. I'll talk to you later, darling."
"Bye."
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"I have a solution," I told Imogen later that evening. She was sat at the counter, reading emails while I cleared away the last of the dishes.
"Oh yeah?" She glanced up, curious.
"Now don't freak out, 'cause I know it's not something that either of us will particularly like but it's an idea."
"You're kinda scaring me, babe."
"Long-distance."
"What?"
"You and me. You take the job in Paris, but I'll stay here, with Abby. We can fly to visit each other when we can and video-chat every day."
"Nick, you barely survived when I was gone for three weeks, how will you deal with me being away for months on end?"
"I'll just have to. It's your dream job. And I've got mine. This way we both get to live our dream."
"My dream is to be with you. And Abby."
"It doesn't have to be forever. Just until you decide if you like the job or until I decide there's something better out there than Pinewood."
"Are you sure you'd be okay with doing that?" She got up and came over to me, turning me around to face her.
"I'm sure. We've done it once; we can do it again." Even though I kept a smile on my face, I could already feel my heart breaking at the thought of us being apart for so long. To hide it, I buried my face in her shoulder, holding her tight and breathing in her familiar scent.
