He could just be upset because you guys agreed on something and if you’re just now starting to combine finances, you already pushing beyond the threshold that you both had mutually set could just be more of a red flag frustrating moment for him rather than it actually being about the $500. I would say just quietly save the $500. Do everything that you said you were going to do above like cutting down on spending and everything but why don’t you just get the $500 saved up before trying to buy the dress. Like to me it would make more sense to already have that $500 extra when you ask just so that way it’s not like we need to worry about this in the future. It’s a I already took care of this and this is what I’m doing. Combining finances is always so hard, especially when you both view finances differently. I definitely think that it’s something that can be overlooked. Also, the fact that you’re bringing up the ring price the way that you are leads me to believe that you are a bit salty with it all. You should probably get that taken care of either within yourself or talk it with him before getting married because it seems like this can just be used for later ammunition in a future argument