To the OP...
As a guy, when I read that part about his reasoning being that they make noise, my gut kinda went....nah, that ain't it...that's just what he's telling her because he thinks the real reason would hurt her feelings and he doesn't want to do that.
When he finally said 'no, because they're gross'...that sounded pretty real. But then you said you could have cried, which of course made him feel really bad, so he backtracked and said he wants pay off the truck and the house before getting quail...
Here's what you gotta understand.. The whole "pay off the house and truck" thing is a hamfisted attempt at not having to have this conversation again for a few more quail-free years, at the very least. Total cop-out...and a little disappointing, frankly. He's clearly a noob, as a pro would have thrown a "Let's at least wait until after we take a real vacation together, baby, so we don't have to worry about finding somebody to watch the quail and whatnot."
I mean, seriously...pay off the house? Delaying until the house is paid for is the nuclear option -- every guy knows that. You pull that one out when the stakes are really high....
Like when she actually asks about that vacation.
What you need to understand is that your BF is between a rock and a hard place right now. He doesn't want quail, but he doesn't want to hurt you either.
You're going to have to tell him how he feels.
Let me repeat that.
Tell
him how
he feels.
Next time it comes up, just tell him that you know he doesn't want quail because birds
can be messy, and that you get that, and then tell him that you also know he didn't want to hurt your feelings.. Tell him that you didn't mean for it to be a big thing and -- now, you may have to feign this a little -- that no matter how much you had your tender little heart set on quail, y'alls relationship is more important.
If he's worth a plug nickel, he's gonna feel like CRAP instantly and you'll have him wheezing on feather dust in no time flat.
If he just says "Thanks for understanding" and pats you on the head, one of three things happened:
A) Your delivery was off somehow
B) He's not as nice as he seems
C) He REAAAAAAALLY didn't want quail...like, seriously, really, REALLY didn't...like, he's closet quailaphobic or something.
You didn't hear that from me, though, or I'll get my guy card revoked.
