Being loved and hearing it are different experiences, and one does not automatically deliver the other. People often assume their affection is obvious from their behavior, and it usually is not, or not as often as they think. Saying it costs almost nothing and lands as something rare. Wanting to hear it is not vanity; it is how the thing becomes real in the room.

Tell someone plainly this week, without a reason or an occasion. And if you are the one who wants to hear it more often, say so out loud rather than waiting to be guessed.