She didn't move away. The air in the room shifted, growing heavy and electric. This was the precipice, the cliff edge of the storyline. If he stayed on the side of safety, they would finish the pizza, she would go home, and they would do this again next week. Safe. Certain. Boring.

: Each character should have their own hobbies, friends, and career goals outside the relationship.

(Forced proximity or recurring encounters) The characters keep crossing paths. Shared projects, mutual friends, a long train commute. This stage builds familiarity, which is the quiet cousin of intimacy.

The core challenge remains: how do you make an algorithm simulate longing ? For now, human writers still hold that key.