Some of us learned to earn every yes by pre-managing everyone’s moods. We scan the room, measure the weather, then decide if our need is allowed. That is over.
 Asking is dignified. It rests on three truths:

1. My need is valid. Valid needs are not emergencies—they are information.
2. Your ‘no’ is legal. Consent is sacred. I can stand in my request and also respect your boundary.
3. Our relationship can hold clarity. If a relationship only survives hints and guesses, it isn’t intimacy. It’s an obstacle course.