Loving a narcissist isn't just a heartbreak; it’s a psychological war that breaks your mind long before it breaks your heart. It is a cycle of "fake tenderness" followed by cold cruelty, leaving you trapped in a constant state of confusion. When they apologize, you feel seen—but by the next day, they act as if the apology never happened, gaslighting you until you question your own memory and sanity. They don't love you; they love the attention and empathy you provide. They feed on your softness and then punish you for it, eventually convincing the world that you are the unstable one. You end up loving a mask even after it has fallen off, starving for scraps of affection while being told you are "too much." The hardest part of freedom is accepting that you cannot fix them—you can only save yourself before you disappear completely. "They feed on your softness and then punish you for it. You aren't crazy; you're just someone who loved a mask."