I have a close friend who is terrified of pets. She is embarrassed by it though and tells people she’s allergic. She grew up in a country that had a lot of free-range dogs and stuff outside, and I imagine that’s why.

She came over one day when we had three cats. She had never met a cat before. Everyone says this, but our cats are the chillest cute lil MFs ever… and they LOVED her. And she LOVED them. She was so shocked at how chill they were, and I think they could sense that she was nervous around them so they just loafed around her or showed her their belly (they love belly pets.)

She’s still terrified of dogs, which I get—they ignore personal boundaries. But having her meet our chill-ass cats warmed my heart very much.