'She prefers to ignore me...'

I like this girl in our residential complex. I was attracted to her the day she shifted to our building. It has been over four months now, but I still do not know her...

Dear Diana,
I like this girl in our residential complex. I was attracted to her the day she shifted to our building. It has been over four months now, but I still do not know her. I am desperate to get to know her. Before she hooks up with someone else, I need to make my move. There is a park within the society premises. Every evening, she takes a walk in the garden. Often, she sits and reads a book. Once I introduced myself to her in the lift. After that she used to smile at me, but now she has stopped doing that. Now she prefers to look through me. What do I do? I have even told other common pals in the building, but they say she knows me. I want to talk to her and hang out with her. What do I do?
— Shishir

Illustration/ Uday Mohite

Dear Shishir,
It looks like she is aware of your existence, but you seem to be stalking her so it might be putting her off. She is your neighbour, so do not make things uncomfortable for her. When you introduced yourself in the lift, she acknowledged your presence and smiled. This means she is well aware of your existence. But it appears that you are hanging around her in a desperate bid to know her. You are sending across wrong signals to her. This is the reason she has stopped smiling at you. Also, by telling common friends that you want to know her might backfire on you. They might carry tales to her and put her off. So go slow, she is your neighbour; she will always be around. For starters, stop stalking her. Next time you come face-to-face with her greet her and strike a conversation, but go slow.

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