After shock comes rage. But this rage is not always loud. Sometimes it simmers like boiling water under a lid, bubbling and steaming, waiting for the right moment to burst. Inside, they are seething. You are not supposed to be smart enough to catch them; you were not supposed to step outside the lines they drew. Now, they hate you for it. Their entitlement fuels this entire fire. Narcissists genuinely believe they can do what they want, when they want, without consequence.
Being exposed, even slightly, is intolerable because it threatens the two things they care about most: their reputation and their supply. More than your feelings, more than the harm they caused, they fear what other people will think. They fear the whispers, the possibility that you may speak the truth out loud. Their ego goes into alarm mode. You’re losing control; they’re slipping away. If they tell others, the mask will fall. Sometimes that rage comes out instantly in an explosion; other times, it simmers and waits, turning into cold revenge. Either way, the rage is always there, feeding the next stage.
The Paranoia Phase: Constant Surveillance
Once this rage sets in, paranoia begins to take over. Their mind becomes a surveillance system that never shuts off. They start thinking, “If you figured this out, what else do you know? If you caught me once, will you catch me again? What if you tell others? What if my whole story unravels?” This is when they become obsessive. They stalk your social media, monitor who you talk to, and plant seeds in other people’s ears, trying to smear you before you can expose them. They recruit flying monkeys to keep tabs on you, turning your world into a stage where you are constantly being watched.
At this point, you live rent-free in their head. You dominate their thoughts in ways you never did before. You are the threat they cannot shake, the danger they cannot control. Every step you take feels like an attack to them. Ironically, by trying so hard to track you, they prove just how much control they have already lost.
The Hidden Shame They Never Show
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