It's too weird for Joseph.

Beth reached out and took Joseph's hand. Feeling his hand in hers made his heart race. To his surprise, she placed it directly onto Ellie's right breast. Ellie looked down at this, then back up at Beth. "Good idea." She said flatly. Beth didn't respond.

Joseph had had enough. "Ok, stop!" He pulled his hand back. "This is weird. I don't like this, please just go back to how you were." The two women visibly relaxed and sighed.

"Well, now we know you can do that," Ellie said with a smile. "Also we know that it turns you on."

Beth grabbed his hand again, this time just holding it in her lap. "So now what, sweetie? Anything else you're interested in trying?" She looked at Ellie. "I know you want to have a relationship with me, but I bet Ellie here will fuck you if you want." Ellie nodded vigorously.

Joseph stood, pulling his hand back. "No! I don't want to turn some stranger into a sex doll or a moron or whatever! I just want things to go back to normal!"

A beat passed and Beth spoke. "You mean you don't want to be dating me?" Joseph couldn't read her tone.

"I- I mean, I don't know! Yes, I do, but not like this. I want you to want it, not just be some puppet! And Ellie, I'm so sorry you got dragged into this. Please, I just want you to live a normal life as if none of this ever happened."

Ellie shrugged and got up to leave. Once again, Beth grabbed her arm. "Wait a minute. I have an idea. Joseph, you seem really disturbed by this new control you have, right?"

He nodded bitterly. "Disturbed is an understatement. I feel like a supervillain."

"I can tell. But what if there was a way to use this power for good? You've seen Fight Club, right?"

Joseph said he had, not sure where she was going. "You remember the scene where the threaten that convenience store clerk with a gun? They take him behind the store and ask him what his dream is. He wants to be a vet or something, so Tyler Durden tells him that they're going to kill him if he doesn't pursue his dream."

He realized what she was getting at. "You want me to do that to Ellie? How is that using my power for good? That's still controlling people!"

Beth smiled sympathetically and squeezed his hand. "Remember, babe, it's not control. It's something similar but not quite the same. You can't just give orders and expect us to obey like compliant robots. We do what's best for you and what you want, not exactly what you tell us you want. Just think about it. What if you could quit smoking, or work out thirty minutes every morning, or go to graduate school without any need for self-discipline or fear of falling off the wagon?"

Ellie chimed in. "I've been putting off getting my Master's for years! I didn't think I'd ever actually do it!"

Joseph picked up the subtext. "You didn't think you would, but now you do?"

She grinned. "I mean, you said live a normal life. Don't you want me to follow my dreams and passions? Or do you not?"

"I mean, obviously I do. If you wanna get your Master's, I think you should do it," Joseph said carefully. He still felt like I was forcing her to do something against her will.

It was as though Beth had read his mind. "Trust us, dude, you're not mind-controlling anyone. We're the ones actually experiencing this, not you. I'm not being your girlfriend against my will, Kat didn't fuck you against her will, and Ellie certainly isn't going back to school against her will. You're just sort of rearranging our priorities for us." She patted his hand. "Now let this nerd go and let's talk about how we use this gift of yours."

Ellie turned to leave. At the door, she turned around. "Throwing out a suggestion - I think you might be able to do some good among addicts." She winked and left the house.