This is intermission. People go get snacks, then the second act starts.

A pause in the middle is not the same as an ending, though from inside it the difference is hard to feel. The lights come up, momentum stops, and the natural conclusion is that the story is over, when the structure simply requires a break between one part and the next. Being between things is a phase with a shape to it.

Use the gap for what gaps are for, rest and resupply rather than a verdict. Avoid making permanent decisions about yourself inside the interval. Something starts after this, and you are still in the building.