Dropping hints and hoping someone catches them isn’t communication. It’s a scavenger hunt nobody signed up for.

Hints protect you from having asked for something, because if it does not land you can say you never really wanted it. The other person is left guessing at a test they did not know they were taking, and then gets blamed for failing it. Resentment builds on your side over a request that was never actually made.

Say one thing plainly this week that you have been circling. It is more exposed than hinting, and it is also the only version that can get a yes.