In the months after Sam moved back to Britain (post-magical coma), Rose marvelled at the way they flew through things.
Maybe it was because they had been so close for so many years as children, or their near-death experience or maybe it was how they'd always kind of fit together, no matter how hard they tried to push each other away.
They moved through their arguments and disagreements with ease, and moments filled with tension were easily discarded by a soft reaching out, a desire to connect, always.
When Sam told Rose she struggled to see things from his perspective she made a huge conscious effort to try, and when Rose complained about how emotional distance had always been Sam's shelter, he knew how important it was to let go of the comfort of hiding his emotions.
.
Desperate effort and longing created a fertile ground for hours of conversation, thoughtful gifts and intimacy almost unparalleled in speed.
They went from not having spoken even one word in 7 years, to deeply intertwined in many aspects of their life.
And all the while, Rose's relationship with Aaliyah burgeoned in other ways.
They built programs together at St Mungos and worked long shifts and hours on their feet.
At work everything went smoothly, but at home when they were both trying to relax, they found themselves caught up in arguments and miscommunications and mismatched expectations.
.
"I need you to plan further ahead than that Aaliyah, you know scheduling is a really big part of how I fit everything in with my family, and you, and Sam. Can't you change it?"
Rose was livid and rapidly pacing the length of Aaliyah's flat in London.
"I can't change it, it's already set with Marlene-"
"This is so unfair, it's like you don't even want me there!" Rose cried in frustration as she felt tears spring to her eyes.
"Well of course I want you there, but Rose this event is literally not about you!" Aaliyah bit back, knowing it was harsh but feeling it needed to be said.
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"That is not the fucking point! Of course I know it's not about me, but I would like to be able to support my partner at her promotion party. How could you have made the date without checking with me? All you had to do was tell me what dates you were thinking about, I don't understand."
Rose's tears finally fell as she angrily sat down on the couch and wiped her face with the sleeve of her t-shirt - a rather awkward and ungainly area to try and lift to your eyes.
"I just feel like you are making this promotion about yourself, instead of who it's really about, which is me," but her tone softened as she sat on the couch to comfort Rose.
"And I guess I just thought that you would have bothered to think of me and ask if I could make it, but obviously you didn't."
"And that was a mistake," Aaliyah offered gently, "But I can't fix the problem. It's already been sent out via memo to the whole of St Mungo's."
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Rose pulled away bitterly, roughly wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand.
"Well whose fault is that then?"
Aaliyah sighed, knowing that she'd screwed up but unable to solve the problem.
It seemed this was just one in a number of tumultuous blow-ups they'd had in the last month.
"Rose, all these ups and downs aren't good for me, for my practice-"
"Well I'm sorry I can't just stop being upset when you keep fucking up."
The silence that hung in the air did not help with the foreboding sense that they were headed somewhere they couldn't come back from.
.
Aaliyah's breathing increased, feeling the attack at the very centre of her chest.
She tried to keep herself calm, like on the wards, "Rose, I am not trying to fuck up, and I'm not the only one fucking up either. You didn't tell me you had anything in the next few weeks, you didn't communicate that they were packed with all manner of birthdays and going away parties and retirement galas. I couldn't have known that and I swear I checked your calendar and it was empty for June 5th."
"Well I've been trying to keep it up to date but you know how big my family is-"
"If it's so big, you should have put in your availabilities properly-"
If you just turn things around and blame me, this is never going to work!" Rose fired back bitterly.
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Aaliyah took another breath to calm herself but she was too emotionally affected and just felt more blood rush to her head.
"Maybe it's already not working."
Rose was quiet before she piped in a small voice, "What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that we've been clashing for ages and I'm just wondering if this is what 'working' looks like?"
"I have been very open with you and what I want, and this party just proves it," Rose replied. "I want to be more of a priority, I need to feel stable and secure with you."
"And I have been trying to give you that but all of these fights are just so draining, I have to wonder if it's working at all!"
"You don't think I find it draining? Of course it is, but this is how we are going to work through our issues."
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Aaliyah sighed heavily and rubbed her temples, "Are we going to work through them? Or are we going to recognise that maybe I organise so many schedules at work, that in my love life I just want things to be easy or that you're already a big priority and if you get any bigger I'm going to feel like I'm losing myself - I don't want my whole life to revolve around me fitting into your schedule Rose, it's degrading."
Rose burst into tears again and Aaliyah felt crushed, she had felt this conversation coming but Rose clearly hadn't.
As the tears flowed freely Rose didn't try to control herself, she was too shocked.
Maybe things hadn't been going as smoothly as they could have been, but Rose never thought thing would shift to this place, a place where maybe they just didn't want the same things…
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Aaliyah gently put her arm around Rose, slowly to gauge how she felt about it, Rose didn't pull away.
"Rose, you know I love you, that's not why I'm saying this. I just don't think we're heading in the same direction anymore - and that took as a while to figure out, but now that we've got here, let's not shy away from it."
Rose hiccoughed as she cried, "I just don't want to lose you, I feel awful about this."
"I'm getting a promotion, I'm heading up the ladder - I just don't think this is the right time for me to be getting really codependent and vying for your time with all the other things you have going on, Sam and your family and stuff."
"You were never vying for it, I wanted to make that time for you-"
"And now I'm telling you that I don't want you to do that anymore… I just don't feel like it's right for either of us."
.
Rose wrapped her arms around Aaliyah and they stayed like that for a long time until finally Aaliyah pressed her lips to Rose's and pulled away.
"I love you," Rose whispered weakly.
"I love you too," Aaliyah said back, stronger, with resigned conviction. "I just know that we're not what each other needs right now."
Rose stood up and stepped over to the chimney.
"Will you Floo me? I'm worried my crying will land me somewhere else," she laughed half-heartedly.
"Of course, you should go home."
.
It felt so foreign to Aaliyah for some reason, to be sending Rose away - she didn't know she had the strength.
She grabbed a handful of Floo Powder and threw it into the grate where Rose was standing, "51 Grundy St, Poplar."
Rose's tearful face turned to a sweet smile before she vanished behind a swathe of green flames.
Aaliyah had sent her to Bee's house, ever-thoughtful, as her parting gift.