Tonight with your 13 to 17 year old
The prompt
“What's a way you show someone you care about them that feels totally like your own style, not borrowed from anyone else?”
What to listen for
If they describe something specific, small gestures, inside jokes, showing up quietly, that's their own love language forming, and it deserves recognition exactly as it is, not compared to how you show care.
If they seem unsure whether their way "counts" as caring because it's not verbal or obvious, reassure them firmly, they need to know quiet or unconventional care is just as real as the loud kind.
If they say they don't really think about it, ask them to think of someone they clearly care about and how that shows, sometimes it's easier to see in action than in words.
What this tells you
How they express care in their own style shows you the shape their love takes when it's authentically theirs.