[Scene: A cozy Parisian café, late afternoon. Élodie and Thomas, two close friends in their late twenties, sit at a small table by the window, sipping coffee and sharing pastries.]
Élodie: (suddenly tapping her knuckles on the wooden table) toc toc toc — Voilà! Crisis averted.
Thomas: (raising an eyebrow) Okay, what disaster did you just save us from this time?
Élodie: I said I was sure I’d get that promotion next week — so of course, I had to knock on wood! Otherwise, who knows what kind of bad luck I might bring on myself?
Thomas: (chuckling) You know, Élodie, you do realize the wood has no magical powers, right? It’s just cellulose and lignin, not some enchanted force field.
Élodie: Oh, come on, Monsieur Rationalité! It’s tradition! My grandmother swore by it. Every time she said something positive, she’d knock on her oak table, and you know what? Things usually turned out fine.
Thomas: (grinning) Correlation doesn’t equal causation, my dear. You could just as easily say it’s because she also drank her chamomile tea every night. Maybe that’s the real secret — herbal infusions and luck.
Élodie: (playfully wagging her finger) Ah, but there’s something comforting about these little rituals. They give you a sense of control when life feels chaotic. Don’t you ever feel the urge to just… hedge your bets a little?
Thomas: Honestly? No. I’d rather focus on things I can control — like preparing well for a job interview or practicing before a presentation. I don’t need to tap on a tree trunk to believe I’ll do well.
Élodie: (smirking) Says the man who wears his “lucky socks” every time France plays in the World Cup.
Thomas: (pretending to be offended) That’s different! That’s just… well, okay, maybe a tiny superstition — but it’s more about fun and tradition, not because I genuinely believe my socks influence Kylian Mbappé.
Élodie: See? We all have our little things! You’re not as immune as you think.
Thomas: Fair point. But I still don’t believe knocking on wood affects outcomes. There’ve been studies on this kind of thing, you know. Superstitions can change how confident we feel, but they don’t actually change reality.
Élodie: But isn’t confidence half the battle? My friend Camille once forgot to knock on wood after bragging about her perfect driving record, and the next day she got into a fender bender! Coincidence?
Thomas: Definitely coincidence. Or maybe she was overconfident and not paying attention. You only remember the times the superstition seems to “work,” but forget all the times you knocked and things still went wrong.
Élodie: (laughing) You’d be a terrible guest at a fortune teller’s. “Madame, I don’t think the stars control my love life; I think my bad Tinder profile does.”
Thomas: (laughing) Guilty as charged. But tell you what — if knocking on wood helps you feel less anxious, go ahead. Just maybe don’t rely on it to decide if you prepare for that big presentation, okay?
Élodie: Deal. But don’t come crying to me when you jinx yourself by scoffing at my beliefs.
Thomas: (grinning) And if you see me kissing my lucky socks before the match, you’re not allowed to tease.
Élodie: (raising her coffee cup) Cheers to our charming mix of reason and ridiculousness.
Thomas: (clinking cups) Cheers, Élodie. May the wood be ever in your favor.
[They both laugh, sipping their coffee as the afternoon sun slants through the café window, each quietly appreciating the quirks that make their friendship work.]
Science Vs Superstition 
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