The dumbest question my anxiety-ridden brain has spat out this year: "What if my cat only lets me pet him because he knows I think he likes getting petted?"
me: oh, what if so-and-so doesn't really LIKE me, they're just hanging out with me to be NICE... also me: [having this crisis while sitting in the living room of the apartment that the so-and-so in question spent two years convincing me to move into with them]
there are cats with language buttons on YouTube who show that while sometimes they do want things for themselves, they care a lot for their people too.
also me: [having this crisis while sitting in the living room of the apartment that the so-and-so in question spent two years convincing me to move into with them]