The second consequence did not arrive through paperwork or scheduling.
It arrived in the space between sentences.
Willow noticed it first in the way Zane stopped finishing her thoughts. He had always done that gently, never as interruption, more as confirmation that he was tracking her logic alongside her. Now he listened all the way through, nodded once, and waited. When she spoke about revisions, about meetings, about the slow drag of unanswered questions, he did not challenge or probe. He absorbed and let it settle.
At first, she told herself this was respect.
Then she realized it was restraint.
The change did not show up in obvious ways. He still woke when Zana stirred at night. He still kissed Willow absentmindedly when passing her in the hallway, still pulled her close when they stood at the counter together, still rested his hand at the small of her back when they moved through a room. Nothing practical had been withdrawn. Nothing physical had cooled.
