i even suck at flirting in video games 😭

This. I'd rather die alone than risk even the slightest possibility of making someone else uncomfortable.
why yes I am in therapy how did you know
- That's what I thought until I shot my shot and missed, until the redirected it back onto themselves.
  IDK, sometimes you just gotta be a little naughty and see how they react. Maybe they'll be just like you and take it right on their face.
- I feel the exactly the same but am not in therapy. ... Maybe I should consider therapy.
  
  Same.
- Yeah the fear of imposing on someone. There are plenty of assholes, but lots of perfectly nice people just communicate what they want/need/feel and it’s okay. Not just talking about dating.
  Then whenever you take your risk and do it, and get rejected, you retreat back to try it again in 6 months.
  Edit: I have zero problem and welcome people being honest, and adjust accordingly. But when I try to do that it rarely works the same way. Could just be how I communicate, but it is a struggle.
- I think the thing that makes people uncomfortable in this kind of scenario is if you don't stop when they ask you to. Or you just refuse to take no for an answer. But our species would cease existing if nobody ever was made uncomfortable at some point by flirting because everyone's lines and desires are on a spectrum. You can say the exact same thing the same way to two different folks and one will turn around and slap you for it and the other will get on their knees for you. Humans are weird.

I can make this easier, at least for anyone interacting with me:
If you're reading this, you - yes, you - have my full and explicit permission to compliment me, flirt with me, or ask me out. I am extremely good at saying no if needed and promise not to be offended if you make the first move.
Also you're cute 😘
- Okay, so let me rebut this point for point:
  Permission doesn't help when I don't know how
  I'm terrified that you'll say no, so that doesn't help either
  Wha- I'm not cute! You're cute! Wait, no, I mean... Sh-shut up!
  
  You've already done it, see point 3
  How can I say no when I've already said yes? At least to the initial conversation anyways
  If you don't think you're cute, prove it 😘 Send me a picture of you, I bet you're cute af
- They shot every shot at once, this strategy is crazy
  
  I'm aggressively poly so, yeah. I'm constantly shooting all of the shots.
- Is it bad that i kinda read this like a llm preprompt? Except for people, and to be honest im kinda here for it. I kinda feel bad for bothering people, and this "preprompt" kinda opens the door for conversation
  
  I kinda feel bad for bothering people, and this "preprompt" kinda opens the door for conversation
  That's the idea! :)
  I'm glad it's working, I was worried it wouldn't. Bystander effect and all that.
  
  I wish people would just write clear and detailed LLM prompts when they want something from me.
  
  How do I say "I need this on a tshirt" but redirect the ads to someone else?
- That's quite kind of you. And interestingly, despite you clearly communicating an open invitation for interaction, I still encounter internal resistance, almost like a reflex.... which suggests it is still very much a personal issue, and not a cultural one.
  Thank you for this moment of reflection, mysterious internet person.
  
  You're welcome!
  And if you do want to message me, I'm very friendly

99% sure that's pretty normal for healthy minded people, men, women, trans, non-binary etc.
Making the first move is taking a risk: aka being vulnerable. It's when they don't respond enthusiastically and you don't stop that it's a problem.
- It is normal to feel some degree of trepidation when taking a risk: aka being vulnerable, but I don't think its a stretch of the imagination to assert that it might be more stressful if you don't have a firm grasp of neurotypical social graces and nonverbal communication.
  As an autistic person, what has worked quite well for me, though takes getting used to, is very transparently communicating about intentions and consent. It can seem quite intense but it does mean everyone knows where they stand and where boundaries lie.

This is one of the many reasons why my life is easier now that I've transitioned from male to female. Now when I do something cringy and weird in order to flirt, people just think it's cute.
I'm on the good side of the double standard now!
I mean not having gender dysphoria anymore's a bigger plus, but ya know, count ya blessings.
- this sounds great but unfortunately is not guaranteed to work (ask me how I know). Terms and conditions apply
  Hell even cis lesbians struggle with this a lot (afaict it's the source of the infamous top shortage)
  
  Wait… all the lesbians I've seen were wearing tops in public.
  Oh you mean those tops.
- Gosh I still feel like a predator
  Maybe I should have just stayed in the vore community, I was in demand lol
  
  The vote what now? Do i wanna knowಠ_ಠ
  
  You never know what you'll find out there.
- gender dysphoria really is a massive debuff

No worries I will make the first move
Pawn to e4
- Checkmate.
  Your move.
  😎
  
  Mate? That's very forward and a primal way to put it but hey why not

harass me.

I'm open for harassment

Im not fem and i feel like this so many times. What i fear most, much more than rejection is overstepping social lines. Also if youre a woman pls make the first move, its extremely hot if the guy is a switch i can tell you that lol.
- Fr. I wish I was into men. Making the first move as a woman is so goddamn easy. Sure, rejection is scary, but that's it.
  I shall stand at the sidelines and encourage my female friends to 1) communicate and work on their issues and 2) go after that hairy man's ass.

I feel this hard. I always feel like I'm imposing myself on everyone. I'm non binary but masc presenting (even though I don't necessarily like that, it's just my default hardware), and like, I hate that the onus is on me to initiate, because I HATE IT
- Hey 😘
  You're valid and probably really cute
  
  They definitely are. Masc-presenting enbies are rare and awesome =3

This is why, despite everything wrong with them, I prefer using dating sites. As long as everyone knows that the communal goal is flirting, it feels a little bit less like I'm bothering them and more like I'm entertaining them.

Holy shit, actually tho.

We're demi and enm so we kind of just become friends with people and hope it works out.

so me… accelerated by the fact i’m asexual and most of my romantic interests r also asexual. i feel weird for wanting to express love chat 🥀🥀

This is how I figured out I was Aro/Ace.

One time we were having drinks at a local pub because a coworker was leaving the job and moving into the city for a different job/uni
I (fairly drunk) told her that, since I'm in the city a fair bit because of uni, I'd be happy to help her if she needed anything
Fast forward to the next morning and I'm waking up realising that it probably looked like I was hitting on her, when I just wanted to be helpful
So yeah it's those moments that make me not want to make the first step (even if the intention was different)
- You're not hitting on her. You were being helpful. Nowwww.... If you continued and followed up multiple times, then yes. Harassment. But if you left it like this, you're just a nice guy.
  
  That's the problem though. I was drunk at the time and can't properly remember what I said fully. It is well within reason I was too insistent or said it weirdly, given that I have 0 social awareness
  Oh well. Guess I'll continue to let it be my thought demon for the next decade or so

god why is that so real

Once you get passed the mask my default mode of interaction is flirting! Still too shy to be actually vulnerable tho.