"You're better at doing things for people than being with them," Valerica said.
The words landed with uncomfortable accuracy. Vane looked up sharply, but there was no cruelty in her expression. Just that same clear-eyed honesty she always brought to difficult conversations.
"You spent six months carrying boxes for me," she continued. "Building a kitchen budget. Learning languages. Running forms in parallel. All of those things were real, and I'm not dismissing them." She paused, her fingers tracing the rim of her wine glass. "But they're all motion. Action. Tasks you could complete and measure."
Vane's throat felt tight. "And?"
"And you don't know how to just be still with someone." Her dark eyes held his steadily. "You don't know how to exist in a space where nothing is required of you."
