The synchronicities shift, too. Yes, you get number sequences when they’re thinking of you, but when they genuinely miss you, it gets more personal. Not just 11:11. Stuff that specifically relates to shared memories between you two - songs you both loved, places you visited together, their name showing up everywhere. Like Spirit is mirroring their nostalgia.
When they miss you, even if they’re unawakened, they feel something is off but can’t place it. They frame it as being tired or ‘coming down with something’ because they don’t understand the connection. They’re feeling it, they just interpret it differently than we do.