I am the narcissist. I am chock full of wickedness. You think that you can have realistic expectations of me, but I will do whatever I can do to throw you off your game. I love devouring empaths. Those who are lonely. Those who have been abused and damaged. Those are the easiest prey for me. I target especially those who don’t put up much of a fight.

I read your profile on the dating apps. I read everything you post on your Facebook account. I notice how other people online and in person relate to you. The more people flock to you, the more difficult it might be for me to ward off those who try to talk you out of dating me. Your coworkers, your friends, and your family might warn you about me. My friends, family and coworkers might also warn you about me. This is the reason that I must isolate you, and that I must do it so quickly.

I pummel you with questions when we first meet. This is because I must know you inside and out. It is not because I want to know you. It is not because I am curious about what makes you tick, or because I want to get interested in your hobbies and interests. It is because I must know you in order to play the strategic game that I have learned. This strategy requires memorizing my opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. This strategy relies on me being quick-witted. It also relies on you being dumb to my ways. The instant you catch on or confront me on my intended brainwashing, I must cut off contact with you abruptly to remind you that I can take me away from you at any time for punishment. If we have kids or a house together, I will constantly remind you that I can take that away from you, too.

You think that I took an interest in your family members. I want to know their names, phone numbers, and how they relate to you so that I can slowly work toward isolating you. I want to know whether you have continuous contact with them so that I can spy on these conversations and limit the chances of you asking for help from someone else.

These acts on my part serve to reel you back to me even when you don’t want to be a part of my world. I hijack your emotions against your will, and no one around you will understand the lengths to which I have gone through to secure this loyalty from you.

If I cannot initiate isolation you from your friends and family, I will abandon the relationship altogether for weaker prey. You will think the new girl is better than you in some way, but in reality she has much weaker willpower than you have. She is submissive. She is primed by other abusers to be oppressed and subdued. She doesn’t complain as much about being a slave to me and my demands. There is less of a threat that she will leave me for someone else the way you might when you realize that I do not truly love you.