This is advice that seems obvious to most people, but I really wish someone would have told it to me when I was 13. Getting up the nerve to ask someone out is difficult but if you don’t want to be alone you have to learn how to do it. I know a lot of cute guys and gals who spent high school, college and beyond lonely because they couldn’t work up the nerve to ask other people out. I also realize that a lot of people I know (myself included) don’t flirt enough to be noticed, or flirt so heavily as to be off-putting. There’s a balance, and it’s different to hit with everyone.
Whenever I asked anyone out in high school there was always physical evidence of it, which you don’t want. Don’t leave a trail. Just ask them casually, politely and verbally, so it can never be traced back to you. That way if they say no, you can just continue being friends with them and act like nothing ever happened. Which is perfect. Having friends is great, you should want a lot of them.
I’m married now, and I ended up with the perfect Ultimate Sweetie for myself, but I definitely blew holes in my social calendar in high school and college with over aggressive and under aggressive behavior. While that worked out for me in the long-run (if you like the way I draw, that is), if you’re the type who gets lonely very easily, consider casting your net casually and often. The worst someone can say is no, and the worst you can do is freak out on them because of it.
Actually that’s not true. I once casually asked someone out and they freaked out all over me, but then I knew I shouldn’t be friends with them at all, so it was still a good thing to have happen.
Anyway, don’t be a creep. How can you tell if you’re being a creep? Just imagine someone you don’t like doing it to you. Did it feel awkward, or did you actively want to force your skeleton out of your body and have it do the bone boogie away from the rest of your body? If you just imagined yourself getting red faced and going “nah, no thanks” then congratulations, you’re not being a creep. If you imagined yourself Alex Macking into a pile of ooze and sliding into the ocean then there’s probably something wrong with your approach.
More than anything just be nice. In general, not even just in love.
Anyway I hope this helped and didn’t bring back too many painful memories. I have a hard time putting serious or awkward parts in my comics because I love jokes so much. I also get second hand embarrassment pretty severely, and when I do it in my comic it lasts for upwards of 6 hours at a time.
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