Actually - forgot to say what the benefit of 'pretending' is. For me, it is a positive outcome from the interaction. However mundane, neither of us is coming out of the interaction angry (him) or trying to dissect every word, every nuance, every look (me). Each positive outcome, I believe, will eventually create a positive picture. Maybe not enough to bring us back together, but one that at the very least, we can use as the basis to co-parent our children.
Also, we all started out as casual acquaintances with our spouses and built from there. It may not erase all the negative memories they've cherry picked during their MLC, but it might just diminish them.
