Gemotions

He’d found her profile online. Sarah. Another sufferer. He’d done his homework. The same condition, but seemingly a different approach. She was an optimist, a believer in positive thinking. It made his skin crawl.

He arranged a meeting, a casual coffee. He wore a mask of polite interest, nodding as she explained her daily affirmations and breathing exercises. He listened to her, and the more she spoke, the harder he clenched his jaw.

"So, you're saying," he said, his voice carefully neutral, "that you've found a way to *manage* it?" She beamed, ready to launch into another platitude. He leaned forward, and with a smile, asked, "Would you mind sharing your routines? I'm finding that my approach is still lacking." He knew her approach was not lacking, but was, in fact, almost entirely ineffective. He wanted her to fail.