Lately, I keep coming back to a fantasy I have about comforting another woman in a public bathroom. I imagine that I either enter the bathroom while the other woman is already in a stall, or she comes in while I'm in a stall. Either way, we don't actually ever see each other.

In the fantasy, I hear some soft sounds that I think might be sobs, but clearly she is trying to control her breathing. Eventually, I hear a gasp that is clearly an uncontrolled sob. Once I've figured out she's crying, I imagine that I ask her what's wrong and talk her through letting it out, while just listening to her sob more and more intensely and letting her know that I'm here to listen. Afterward, she thanks me for being there, and I leave. Again, we never see each other.

This is such an unlikely situation to happen in real life because I think if I were in this position, I'd feel pretty awkward about actually talking to the woman. I've seen women crying in bathrooms before, but nothing beyond wiping a few tears and washing up at the sink (and not for years). I've never spoken to any of them because I figure they don't want to be calling attention to their tears, and they've never looked upset enough that they need immediate help. But the thought of talking someone through their feelings while they anonymously sob a few feet away from me is incredibly arousing to think about!