diff --git a/docs/rest/shared/_optimisticTransform.mdx b/docs/rest/shared/_optimisticTransform.mdx
index 0d0dfa930a50..3b6f5e44002e 100644
--- a/docs/rest/shared/_optimisticTransform.mdx
+++ b/docs/rest/shared/_optimisticTransform.mdx
@@ -4,15 +4,16 @@ import {RestEndpoint} from '@data-client/rest';
 export const raceDemo = [
   { delay: 800, store: 'open' },
   { delay: 1000, click: 'button.upvote' },
-  { delay: 75, click: 'button.upvote' },
-  { delay: 75, click: 'button.upvote' },
-  { delay: 75, click: 'button.upvote' },
+  ...Array.from({ length: 4 }, () => ({
+    delay: 120,
+    click: 'button.upvote',
+  })),
   // past the slowest increment response (the fixture's 5s), so the
   // timeline holds every response
   { wait: 5500 },
   { click: { in: 'store', selector: 'button[aria-label="Diff"]' } },
   // the first action (the count's load), then on through each change, time
-  // to read each diff: 5 = the changes the 4 clicks make, as Diff's "Next
+  // to read each diff: 6 = the changes the 5 clicks make, as Diff's "Next
   // change" counts them (more would idle at the end before the close)
   {
     click: {
@@ -20,7 +21,7 @@ export const raceDemo = [
       selector: '[role="group"][aria-label^="Scrubber"] button[data-id]',
     },
   },
-  ...Array.from({ length: 5 }, () => ({
+  ...Array.from({ length: 6 }, () => ({
     delay: 1500,
     click: { in: 'store', selector: 'button[aria-label="Next change"]' },
   })),
diff --git a/website/src/components/Playground/preview/__tests__/autorun.test.ts b/website/src/components/Playground/preview/__tests__/autorun.test.ts
index 54a51512f806..aa73b6d65ac0 100644
--- a/website/src/components/Playground/preview/__tests__/autorun.test.ts
+++ b/website/src/components/Playground/preview/__tests__/autorun.test.ts
@@ -22,7 +22,10 @@ function fakeStage(
   const calls: string[] = [];
   const stage: Stage = {
     find: target => (target === STORE_TOGGLE ? toggle : found),
-    point: el => void calls.push(el === toggle ? 'point toggle' : 'point'),
+    point: el => {
+      calls.push(el === toggle ? 'point toggle' : 'point');
+      return true;
+    },
     click: () => void calls.push('click'),
     append: (_, text) => void calls.push(`append ${text}`),
     store: (open, { pressed, view } = {}) =>
@@ -59,6 +62,19 @@ it('plays steps in order, at their times', async () => {
   expect(player.getState()).toBe('done');
 });
 
+it("clicks again without a glide when the pointer hasn't moved", async () => {
+  const player = createPlayer();
+  const { stage, calls } = fakeStage();
+  stage.point = () => {
+    calls.push('point');
+    return false;
+  };
+  const done = player.play([{ delay: 20, click: 'button' }], stage);
+  await jest.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(20);
+  await done;
+  expect(calls).toEqual(['point', 'click', 'end']);
+});
+
 it('pausing keeps the time left', async () => {
   const player = createPlayer();
   const { stage, calls } = fakeStage();
@@ -211,6 +227,25 @@ describe('stage', () => {
     }
   });
 
+  it('says whether the pointer moved', () => {
+    const root = playground();
+    const stage = createStage(root, () => {});
+    const [one, two] = root.querySelectorAll('button');
+    one.getBoundingClientRect = () =>
+      ({ left: 0, top: 0, width: 20, height: 20 }) as DOMRect;
+    two.getBoundingClientRect = () =>
+      ({ left: 40, top: 0, width: 20, height: 20 }) as DOMRect;
+    expect(stage.point(one)).toBe(true);
+    expect(stage.point(one)).toBe(false);
+    expect(stage.point(two)).toBe(true);
+    // the page scrolled under a target that stays put (a sticky Store):
+    // the layer moved, so the pointer must glide back onto it
+    const layer = root.lastElementChild as HTMLElement;
+    layer.getBoundingClientRect = () =>
+      ({ left: 0, top: -50, width: 0, height: 0 }) as DOMRect;
+    expect(stage.point(two)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
   it('the pointer follows its target when the playground resizes', () => {
     let resized: () => void = () => {};
     (globalThis as any).ResizeObserver = class {
diff --git a/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/player.ts b/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/player.ts
index 6e43fde27479..3e9e2c00247a 100644
--- a/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/player.ts
+++ b/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/player.ts
@@ -5,8 +5,9 @@ import type { StoreView } from '../store/storeView';
 /** What a script acts on: the playground's DOM (./stage.ts) */
 export interface Stage {
   find(target: Target): HTMLElement | null;
-  /** Brings `el` into view and moves the pointer onto it */
-  point(el: HTMLElement): void;
+  /** Brings `el` into view and moves the pointer onto it; false when it
+   * was there already (a repeated click), so there's no glide to wait out */
+  point(el: HTMLElement): boolean;
   click(el: HTMLElement): void;
   append(el: HTMLElement, text: string): void;
   /** Opens or closes the Store, in `view` if given; `pressed`: the pointer
@@ -95,10 +96,7 @@ async function perform(
     // onto the Store's toggle first, as a reader would; where the layout
     // shows one
     const toggle = stage.find(STORE_TOGGLE);
-    if (toggle) {
-      stage.point(toggle);
-      await sleep(MOVE_MS);
-    }
+    if (toggle && stage.point(toggle)) await sleep(MOVE_MS);
     return stage.store(step.store === 'open', {
       pressed: !!toggle,
       view: step.view,
@@ -115,8 +113,7 @@ async function perform(
     throw new Error(`nothing matches ${JSON.stringify(target)}`);
   };
   const target = 'click' in step ? step.click : step.type;
-  stage.point(await find(target));
-  await sleep(MOVE_MS);
+  if (stage.point(await find(target))) await sleep(MOVE_MS);
   if ('click' in step) return stage.click(await find(target));
   for (const char of step.text) {
     stage.append(await find(target), char);
diff --git a/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/stage.ts b/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/stage.ts
index c831cfc53b61..fcc409b3d3a8 100644
--- a/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/stage.ts
+++ b/website/src/components/Playground/preview/autorun/stage.ts
@@ -19,7 +19,9 @@ export function createStage(root: HTMLElement, showStore: ShowStore): Stage {
   let at = { x: 0, y: 0 };
   let pointedAt: HTMLElement | undefined;
 
-  /** Moves the pointer onto `el`, the tip at its center */
+  /** Moves the pointer onto `el`, the tip at its center; false when it was
+   * drawn there already (in the layer's coordinates, which scroll with the
+   * page) */
   const place = (el: HTMLElement) => {
     const box = el.getBoundingClientRect();
     const origin = layer.getBoundingClientRect();
@@ -34,12 +36,14 @@ export function createStage(root: HTMLElement, showStore: ShowStore): Stage {
       pointer.innerHTML = POINTER_SVG;
       layer.append(pointer);
     }
+    const previous = pointer.style.transform;
     pointer.style.transform = `translate(${at.x - origin.left}px, ${at.y - origin.top}px)`;
     // the first point fades in where it is, then glides from there
     if (first) {
       void pointer.offsetWidth;
       pointer.dataset.shown = '';
     }
+    return first || pointer.style.transform !== previous;
   };
   /** A press: a ring spreads from the tip (none without Web Animations,
    * e.g. jsdom) */
@@ -87,7 +91,7 @@ export function createStage(root: HTMLElement, showStore: ShowStore): Stage {
       revealIn(root, el);
       revealOnPage(el);
       pointedAt = el;
-      place(el);
+      return place(el);
     },
 
     click(el) {