diff --git a/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/Session.java b/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/Session.java
index e025ce71518b..e42e5f030939 100644
--- a/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/Session.java
+++ b/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/Session.java
@@ -33,7 +33,24 @@
  * vRPC transport.
  */
 public interface Session {
-  /** State transitions of Session, will happen in defined order */
+  /**
+   * State transitions of Session, will happen in defined order:
+   *
+   * <ul>
+   *   <li>{@link #NEW}: Initial state before {@link #start} is called.
+   *   <li>{@link #STARTING}: Open handshake sent; bounded by {@code OPEN_SESSION_TIMEOUT}.
+   *   <li>{@link #READY}: Open handshake completed; ready to serve vRPCs.
+   *   <li>{@link #CLOSING}: Graceful close initiated (via {@link #close} or server {@code
+   *       GoAwayResponse}) while an in-flight vRPC (including a client-cancelled one) is still on
+   *       the wire waiting for the server's response before {@code CloseSessionRequest} can be
+   *       sent. Bounded by server heartbeats ({@code checkHeartbeat}) and the server-enforced
+   *       {@code VirtualRpcRequest.deadline}.
+   *   <li>{@link #WAIT_SERVER_CLOSE}: No vRPC is in flight on the wire (so server heartbeats stop)
+   *       and {@code CloseSessionRequest} + {@code halfClose()} have been sent; waiting for the
+   *       server to close the stream. Bounded by {@code CLOSE_SESSION_TIMEOUT}.
+   *   <li>{@link #CLOSED}: Terminal state; underlying stream is closed.
+   * </ul>
+   */
   enum SessionState {
     NEW(0),
     STARTING(1),
@@ -95,12 +112,14 @@ OpenParams withIncrementedAttempts() {
   void start(OpenSessionRequest req, Metadata headers, Listener sessionListener);
 
   /**
-   * Caller instructed close of the Session. Will immediately close the session and abort all
-   * outstanding vRPCs.
+   * Initiates a graceful close of the Session. Transitions the session to {@link
+   * SessionState#CLOSING}, waits for any in-flight vRPC on the wire (including a client-cancelled
+   * one) to receive its server response, and then sends {@link CloseSessionRequest} ({@link
+   * SessionState#WAIT_SERVER_CLOSE}).
    */
   void close(CloseSessionRequest req);
 
-  /** Force close a session. */
+  /** Immediately aborts the session stream and fails any in-flight vRPC. */
   void forceClose(CloseSessionRequest reason);
 
   /**
diff --git a/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/SessionImpl.java b/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/SessionImpl.java
index b155ffd4d7ad..d07bbc348d39 100644
--- a/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/SessionImpl.java
+++ b/java-bigtable/google-cloud-bigtable/src/main/java/com/google/cloud/bigtable/data/v2/internal/session/SessionImpl.java
@@ -405,6 +405,10 @@ public void close(CloseSessionRequest req) {
           closeReason = req;
           updateState(SessionState.CLOSING);
 
+          // If a vRPC is still in flight on the wire (even if cancelled locally via cancelRpc),
+          // wait in CLOSING for the server's vRPC response before sending CloseSessionRequest:
+          // the protocol has no wire cancel-vRPC message yet, and sending CloseSessionRequest while
+          // the server still has an active vRPC logs a server-side blackholed-response error.
           if (currentRpc == null) {
             startGracefulClose();
           }
@@ -493,6 +497,17 @@ public void startRpc(VRpcImpl<?, ?, ?> rpc, VirtualRpcRequest payload) {
   public void cancelRpc(long rpcId, @Nullable String message, @Nullable Throwable cause) {
     sessionSyncContext.execute(
         () -> {
+          // The Session protocol does not yet have a wire cancel-vRPC message, so the server
+          // continues executing the vRPC until it finishes or hits the server-enforced
+          // VirtualRpcRequest.deadline. We record currentCancel here while keeping currentRpc set
+          // until handleVRpcResponse / handleVRpcErrorResponse arrives so that:
+          //   1. A READY session is not returned to the pool while the server still has an active
+          //      vRPC on it (which would violate the single-in-flight-vRPC limit on the next call).
+          //   2. A CLOSING session waits for the server to finish the vRPC before sending
+          //      CloseSessionRequest (sending CloseSessionRequest while a vRPC is still active on
+          //      the server is treated as a blackholed-response error by the server).
+          // Note: the caller's operation future is already completed immediately by
+          // RetryingVRpc.cancel().
           if (currentRpc != null && rpcId == currentRpc.rpcId) {
             currentCancel =
                 VRpcResult.createRejectedError(
@@ -556,6 +571,15 @@ private void cancelCloseTimeout() {
   // Runs on sessionSyncContext (dispatched from the wheel-timer tick body). If the session is
   // still in WAIT_SERVER_CLOSE, the server never closed the stream after CloseSessionRequest;
   // force-close so the session reaches CLOSED.
+  //
+  // Why this only covers WAIT_SERVER_CLOSE and not CLOSING:
+  //   - A session only stays in CLOSING while currentRpc != null (an active vRPC is on the wire).
+  //   - Server invariant: the server only sends HeartbeatResponse while a vRPC is actively
+  //     running on the server, and enforces VirtualRpcRequest.deadline on every vRPC.
+  //   - Therefore, CLOSING is already bounded by checkHeartbeat() (if the server dies/stalls) and
+  //     the server-enforced vRPC deadline (if the server is alive and sending heartbeats).
+  //   - Once the vRPC finishes and the session enters WAIT_SERVER_CLOSE, no vRPC is active so
+  //     server heartbeats stop, and closeTimeout takes over to bound waiting for stream closure.
   private void checkCloseTimeout() {
     sessionSyncContext.throwIfNotInThisSynchronizationContext();
     if (state != SessionState.WAIT_SERVER_CLOSE) {