You always thought your big, Austrian boyfriend had a bit of a staring problem. Often he would lapse into periods of complete silence, and his eyes would remain trained on some fixed point—a wall, a houseplant, you. Then, after several minutes typically, he would return to normal as if nothing had happened. These ‘staring contests’, as you liked to call them, with random objects and people were typically not an issue. Konig hardly ever did this in public, and you didn’t really mind it.

But, still, you had never brought this topic up with him before. You weren’t sure how to go about asking him, but you were getting curious about his reasons for this odd habit.

One night, a hard rain was pounding the windows of your tiny, shared apartment. You were snuggled on the couch with Konig, your head resting comfortably on his chest. His slow breathing, the weather, and the random movie playing quietly on the TV all made you feel very cozy and relaxed. When you took a look at Konig, you realized he was doing the thing again. His eyes were on you, only you, and seemed to be glued there. You decided this would be a good time to broach the topic.

“You stare a lot.” You kept your voice soft; you wanted him to know you were only observing. He went quiet for a moment, then shrugged. His low, tired, surprisingly honest reply caught you a bit off-guard.

“I like to look at things I don’t want to lose.”