Because

[Fearful Symmetry]

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Hi, FS and Mr. Alien. The vampire interpretation works for me, and is timely for Halloween. I had Sleeping Beauty in mind, but the structure is diffuse enough to accommodate diversity of thought. Thanks for the reads.

I admit, I missed the mark here, but now that you say that it falls into place 

I was reading this as if the narrator were having a depressive episode, assigning their partner the metaphorical role of coal miner for trying to wake them up and delve into their depression.