I Want a Cat. My Boyfriend Says We're Not Ready. Am I Being Unrealistic?

Lately we've been having the same argument over and over again, and I honestly don't know if I'm being unreasonable. I really want a cat. Not on impulse. Not because I saw a cute video online and suddenly decided I needed one. I've wanted one for years. I grew up around pets and I've always imagined having one once I had my own place and a stable life. The problem is my boyfriend doesn't think we're ready. His reasons aren't completely irrational. He says pets are expensive, they're a long-term responsibility, and they make it harder to travel or move around. I understand all of that. A pet isn't something you get bored of and return a few months later. But at the same time, I feel like if we keep waiting until everything is perfect, we'll never do anything. There will always be another expense. There will always be a reason to wait. There will always be some uncertainty about the future. What makes this difficult is that I don't think this is really about the cat anymore. For me, the cat represents building a home together. It represents stability. It represents creating a life that feels a little less temporary. For him, I think it represents another responsibility and another thing that could go wrong. Neither of us is necessarily wrong, but we're looking at the same situation completely differently. The more we talk about it, the more I find myself wondering if other couples run into these kinds of disagreements too. Not specifically about pets, but about timing. One person feels ready for the next step. The other doesn't. And suddenly you're stuck trying to figure out whether you're being patient or simply putting your life on hold. Maybe I'm overthinking it. Maybe it's just a cat. But lately it doesn't feel like the conversation is really about the cat at all. 🐾 Has anyone else had a disagreement like this with their partner? How did you figure out who was being realistic and who was just afraid of change?