If you're an Awkward, trying to talk to someone you like is extremely perilous. There's no telling what might come out of your mouth, such as numerous stories about your cat (you don't have a cat), or an entire donut. Guys are probably more prone to accidental insults (e.g saying "Hello! Your butt is enormous," somehow meaning it as a compliment, and then fleeing from your barrage of karate chops), but you don't have to be a guy to find yourself accidentally insulting your crush. Examples:
"I can tell that you're a dork like me! Not that I'm calling you a dork, except in the sense that I just did."
"Haha, I hope you're wearing that shirt ironically! Oh, you aren't? W-well, uh, neither am I, even though that makes no sense."
"You look a lot like my dad! Not that I am attracted to my dad. Where are you going. Stop running away at incredible speed."
Doing this is at least partially caused by Chronic Shybrains. Shyness and nervousness are associated with an overactive amygdala, aka the "lizard brain," which controls your most basic unconscious impulses. If you look down right now and there's a tarantula on your foot, you're not going to say, "Okay, what should I logically do now, regarding this tarantula?" Your body is going to leap out of your chair immediately, without you making a single conscious decision about it. The problem is that
shy people experience something similar in situations that don't call for it, resulting in sweaty palms, an increased heart rate, and Acute-Onset Idiot Mouth. You are reacting to your crush as though they are a tarantula. The best way to overcome this behavior is to condition yourself out of it by having a bunch of normal conversations with people you think are cute until your brain learns to behave around them. Here are some suggestions on how to get this process started.
