Today I had an interaction that felt incredibly aligned with who I am.
I was eating at an Indian restaurant with friends, and one of the servers caught my attention immediately. She was stunning — elegant, mature, classy. The way she walked, the way she spoke, everything about her presence drew me in. I was honestly in awe. I couldn’t stop smiling like a kid.
I kept looking at her because I wanted her to see me looking at her. Eventually she did. She walked over and asked if we needed anything. I just said, “No, I was just checking you out. You’re really beautiful.” She said “Oh, okay,” and walked away.
But internally I felt like it wasn’t over.
Later, I waved her over again. She came to the table. I asked her name. We shook hands. I playfully asked if we were boyfriend and girlfriend now. She laughed and said she was happily single and not dating.
I teased her a bit. I told her that’s only because she hadn’t met me yet. I joked about her going home alone and hugging her pillow at night. She laughed. It felt natural. Playful. Not forced.
At one point I leaned in and told her I’d take her number and take her out outside of work. She declined again, saying she really wanted to stay single. I didn’t push past that. I complimented her nails, held her hand for a moment, gave it back. She stayed at our table for a while after that, even though she had every opportunity to leave.
That part was interesting to me.
Maybe she truly doesn’t want to date. Maybe she’s serious about relationships. Maybe it’s something else entirely. There are a million possible reasons. But the key thing for me is this: I did exactly what felt right.
I was direct from the start. I didn’t hide interest. I was playful, grounded, cocky in a natural way. I expressed that I wanted her. There was no strategy running in my head. No performance. No neediness. When she declined multiple times, I accepted it calmly. When I went to pay later, we still chatted briefly and it was light.
That felt like a win.
Was I perfectly present the entire time? Maybe not. I didn’t have a “plan” for the conversation. There were moments where I wondered if I could have pushed more, asked more, tried again differently. But honestly, I don’t think pushing more would have changed much. I feel at peace with how I handled it.
Afterwards, something else came up.
On my way back, I noticed a few Asian girls. In the past, that would have instantly triggered strong attraction and urgency. This time, I paused and questioned it. Am I actually attracted right now? Or is there an ego attachment there — an image I’ve built in my mind?
I also noticed fear.
Historically, some of the coldest rejections I’ve experienced were from Asian girls. There’s a layer of tension there that feels different. It made me realize that part of what I call “attraction” might sometimes be pedestal + fear mixed together.
I’m curious about that.
Part of me feels like the next edge for me is this: when I see an Asian girl and feel that fear spike, I want to go talk to her — not to prove anything, but to see what’s actually there. Is it real attraction? Or is it projection?
Overall though, today felt good.
Not because I got a number.
Not because I “won.”
But because I showed up as myself.
Direct. Playful. Grounded. Honest.
And that feels like real progress.