**General pattern across versions:** - **Intense and all-in, then cold** — he tends to latch onto someone with full focus and intensity, but it's not stable. The switch from devotion to detachment (or hostility) can be sudden when his expectations aren't met - **Possessive, not affectionate** — his "love" reads more like ownership. He wants the person to fit into his world, validate him, and stay in the role he's assigned them. Genuine partnership or compromise doesn't really compute - **Tests them** — he'll push boundaries or put them in dangerous situations (sometimes unknowingly, sometimes not) to see if they'll stay, measure their loyalty, or prove something to himself - **Uses them as an anchor** — in his more vulnerable moments, a love interest can be the one thing keeping him grounded or tethered to his humanity. The problem is that puts immense pressure on that person, and when the relationship strains, he doesn't cope well - **Self-sabotage is almost guaranteed** — his paranoia, ego, and volatility eventually poison things. He'll misinterpret intentions, lash out, or push them away before they can leave him - **The mask comes off around them** — this is the interesting flip side. With a love interest, he sometimes drops the controlled, calculating exterior and shows the raw, broken parts underneath. It's the closest he gets to vulnerability, but it's rarely healthy — it's more like emotional dumping - He's *desperate* for approval and affection in a way that's almost childlike. His love interest becomes a stand-in for the validation he never got - He's deeply insecure in the relationship — constantly reading into things, needing reassurance, and getting agitated when he doesn't get it - When things go wrong, he blames them entirely. There's no self-reflection; it's "they betrayed me" not "maybe I pushed them away" **Bottom line:** He's not capable of a healthy romantic relationship. He wants the *idea* of love — the stability, the validation, the normalcy — but he doesn't have the emotional tools to actually sustain one. It always ends badly, and usually because of him.