I had only been dating the guy who would eventually become my husband three weeks when he called me and, at once brazenly and sheepishly, asked me if he could borrow three thousand dollars. He wanted to buy into an investment opportunity that he was excited about, but he had enough sense to recognize that it was a huge ask because it was far from guaranteed that that money wouldn't just be flat out GONE, it was one of those super risky things that essentially never pan out, but some people go for it anyway because hope is a powerful drug. He immediately launched into all sorts of "no matter how long it takes I'll pay you back and if it pays off you'll make interest" but I cut him off and said, "Listen. I will lend you this money. If the investment succeeds, I'll expect you to pay me back in full. However if it fails, we can simply call it a loss. I am prepared to lose the money. I am only going to ask one thing of you, in return for this: I would like you to play me something that you truly like playing." My husband is a pianist. At the time we were both performers in a show, I was in the dance chorus and he was one of the conductors of the orchestra. I'd heard him play rehearsals and other work stuff and we'd talked a lot about music, but I'd never heard him truly play. He didn't have access to any pianos outside of work, but the next week he was slated to move into a new house that came with a baby grand piano. He already had the keys, so even though his lease hadn't officially started, that Sunday (our day off) we went to the house where eventually I'd be putting my step kids to bed, learning to cook and how to be a partner. The utilities were off so there was no light or heat on this afternoon in late autumn. I wrapped up in my scarf and sat on the floor next to the piano and he played this sonata for me. Best three thousand dollars I ever spent.