“He did what?” Meghan’s voice was high and shrill and Amelia’s eyes widened as she gestured for her friend to keep it down.

She’d met Meghan for brunch, not wanting to get up early after the events of the night before. Meghan was on her second mimosa, and Amelia was sipping at a Bloody Mary, hoping that it would help to at least blunt her emotional hangover.

“He’s accepting a job in New York,” Amelia said patiently. “And he wants us to break up for a while—I mean, we are breaking up for a while—until I decide if I want to move or not.”

“And he didn’t even discuss it with you? He just decided on his own? Out of nowhere?”

Amelia sighed. “Yes.”

“That’s not okay,” Meghan said. “Your relationship should be more important to him than a corner office and a higher paycheck.”

Amelia shrugged. “He spent all of college counting on his dad’s connections to get a job. I did know that. I guess I just assumed he’d use those connections to get a job here. But he wants to be closer to his family.”

“His family doesn’t like you,” Meghan pointed out.

“I know,” Amelia said. “It’s one of the reasons I’m not sure I want to go. I feel like his mother is always going to be in my business if we live there. She hates that I’m dating her son—was dating her son,” she amended. “She’s probably thrilled to hear that we’ve broken up.”

“But is it a real breakup?” Meghan asked. “I mean, he said he still wants you to apply for jobs there and that you guys will discuss it once your job offers come in.”

“It’s a real breakup,” Amelia confirmed. “He doesn’t want us to feel beholden to each other in any way.” She bit her lip. “And honestly, I sort of agree with him. If we’re together, or just ‘on a break’, I would feel pushed to move. I need to figure this out on my own.”

“He’s being an ass,” Meghan stated flatly.

“Yes,” Amelia admitted. “He is being an ass, but he’s also right. It is the best choice for him, given his options. And I should do what’s best for me.” She took a sip of her drink. “Doesn’t this happen all the time to couples after they graduate?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Meghan said. “I’ve had a few friends that split up because of job prospects.”

“Did they get back together?”

Meghan pressed her lips together, clearly reluctant to respond. “Noooo,”

she said, finally, drawing out the word. “No, they didn’t.”

Amelia sighed. “Well, maybe we’ll be the exception. Or maybe we won’t, and then it will be for the best, right?”

“You’ll be fine, no matter what,” Meghan said reassuringly. “Anyone would be lucky to be with you.”

“I guess,” Amelia said. “It’s been almost five years since I dated anyone else."

“Well, you don’t have to jump right back in.”

“Oh, I won’t,” Amelia assured her. “I can’t think of anything I want to do less than start trying to date. In fact, the only thing I think I really want to do right now is sleep.”

“You deserve it. You’ve been working nonstop for four years.”

“I suppose I do deserve a bit of a break,” Amelia laughed.

Amelia pushed all thoughts of David out of her head. She would enjoy her day with her friend. She wouldn’t worry about the future. Not yet, anyway.

* * *

By the next morning, she was starting to feel better. She made a pot of tea and some toast, and settled in at her desk to begin her job search. Amelia had decided to split the applications as equally as possible between local employers and New York. If she didn’t go to New York with David, she wanted to stay here, where she had friends and a network. Her life had been here for the last eight years after all.

She spent a few hours scrolling through listings, adjusting her cover letter, tweaking her resume, and filling out questionnaires. By lunchtime, she’d sent out twelve applications. Six local, and six in New York City.

She got up and walked to the kitchen to make a sandwich. It was strange for the apartment to be so quiet on a Sunday, and it felt strange to be alone. Usually she and David went out to brunch, went to an exhibition or a movie, and then came home and had lazy, slow, romantic sex. This would be followed by a nap. They’d wake up, forage in the kitchen for something for dinner, and watch their shows on Sunday night. It was her favorite day of the week, and she felt the sudden, sharp ache of loneliness. She didn’t really want to curl up on the couch alone and watch the shows they usually watched together. It had been nice to have the bed all to herself for a couple nights, but she missed their lazy, sex-fueled naps, especially the way David always rolled over in his sleep and curled around her.

It made her wonder all over again if this was the right choice. She hadn’t asked to have to make these decisions, to have her life turned upside down. She’d been comfortable and happy. She felt a flash of anger at David for messing everything up. Why couldn’t he have been okay with how things had been?

Her phone chimed, and she picked it up, glad for something to distract her. It was an email from her stats tutor, Professor Smedley:

Amelia,

I’m not sure what your post-graduation plans are, but a potentially interesting opportunity has come up, and I thought of you. Our department has received a grant for six weeks of research in Scotland, and the topic is similar to that which you worked on for your doctoral research. You focused primarily on the changing economics of American agriculture, and the department grant is funding research on the economics of small livestock farming operations in a rural area of Scotland. It’s fairly rough living for six weeks, and the stipend is modest, but I thought the research topic might interest you. Please let me know soon if this is something that you might want to take advantage of.

Yours, Stuart Smedley.

Amelia set the phone down, her head spinning. She hadn’t expected anything like this and it sounded like a fantastic opportunity. She felt nervous at the idea of living in a remote area for six weeks, but surely she could manage it? In fact, the idea of being cut off from civilization was downright tempting at this point in her life.

Her first instinct was to call David and ask him for his opinion but she squelched that. He hadn't consulted her so why the hell should she take his feelings into consideration?

Amelia sank down onto one of the bar stools at the counter, tapping her fingers against the granite. She’d never been out of the country before. She had a passport, but it was all shiny and unused. The idea of such a long flight made her feel a little queasy but that alone wasn’t a good enough reason to turn down such a great opportunity.

It would look good on her resume. It would give her a breather from everything, give her space to think, to really be alone without David's influence. Also, without the noise of her friends trying to convince her this way and that. It would be an adventure like nothing she’d ever done on her own before. It would be an accomplishment.

She picked up the phone, and hit reply.