What has changed with my friend?

[ProfX]

Ok, so here is my back story. For the past couple of months a close friend of mine has been a little flirty and a few other things seem to be changing a bit, not in a bad way, in a good way. Now i know she likes me otherwise we wouldn't be friends, however somethings are a bit different, so here's what's been going on:

First off it started over a pen, we work together, albeit i work out of the office a lot and so most of my time in the office is when there are meetings, back to the pen, when entering the office i have to sign a register, it seemed quite insignificant at the time, but the following meeting she was fussing over the pen, the first time it was because there was no pen and the second time she kept pointing out that there was a pen there for me, this is when i noticed little changes in her voice, it was a lot softer and it was also when she started doing little things that she had not done before, such as making me drinks and she started bringing the good biscuits to the meetings, not the cheap rubbish we used to have.

Anyway, the flirting i would pressume was stepped up a gear when i noticed she was acting just like me, her speech and she explained something that i had told her 2 months prior and she could recant it word for word, in fact it was word perfect. she started doing the leg crossing thing, whilst she was crossing her legs, she kicked me, so i looked at her and smiled, i noticed a bit of her legs, never seen her legs before, she's always worn long trousers.

There's other little things too, everytime i talk to her, she's always smiling, has these great big eyes, a bit more than she did before this all started. There was one thing that she did in a meeting that stood out, during the meeting a colleague who was sat across from me was staring at me, she was probably in a world of her own, so i looked at her, my friend leaned forward to block my view of her, it was a bit puzzling.

Recently whilst i was in the office, i was talking to a colleague and she kept walking past me, she interupted our conversation and whilst we talked she never took her eyes off me, not one flinch.

There was also a couple of other things that intrigued me aswell, whilst in a meeting, i went to the toilet and upon returning found her stood there with the biscuits in her hand to offer me them, she's never done that plus after the meeting she came running after me to say see you soon, that's a first. A couple of days ago i was signing into the building and we were chatting, all nice and all and then two guys were behind me to sign in and she didn't greet them in the way she greeted me, she seemed a bit annoyed as if they were interferring with the time she was with me.

My question is, what is going on? Does she like me more than friends?

[searock]

Why don't you ask her? Just ask her out on a date. FWIW, I do think she is interested in you as more than a friend.

[ProfX]

Thanks searock. I will see her friday morning and casually drop it into conversation.

[amazinglyshik]

Hi,

It's great that you get along with the friend and know her well enough to find the courage to ask her out, but often working relationships can be more complicated when they become intimate.

Perhaps keeping things as casual as they can be until you know more about her would be my best advice at this stage. She is not going to go off you just because you don't ask her out very soon,
but shows to her that you are also prepared to keep the professional boundaries strong until you are more familiar with her outside of work as a friend. So many people I have known have met their
partners through their working lives, yet very few last because the boundaries get mixed up too quickly. Find out if she has plans to remain at her job or if she has other career goals, how far away
she lives and if indeed, she is single.

Not all people who smile at us and treat us differently are being like that because they want something more intimate, but it is great if she does. She might just be being overtly friendly, so getting to
know her inside as well as outside of work on a platonic footing is far better than leaping into an unknown with someone you hardly know nothing. Not sure what your job is, but office jobs are notorious for temporary affairs and are well documented, so be sure to enjoy the fun with her but not take things to another level until you have a better understanding of her role at work and if she is looking for a serious relationship as you are.

Not trying to put you off - she sounds great and compatible with you from what I have read, but work-place romances rarely last or are serious unless you are prepared to keep the boundaries tight from the onset. Women like their independance from men and why they choose to keep their work lives seperate from their emotional lives, few women like working and getting intimate long-term with their partner unless they are in a business as a couple together. I have seen a lot of awful scenes in workplaces due to this, so just be sure that you are also prepared for it to be a bit of fun on her part if she is not wanting anything serious.

Good luck and hope all goes well for you.

[IndiReloaded]

Beware the workplace romance. Almost never ends well.

[ProfX]

Thanks for the advice, I haven't been able to get back into the office for a while, so only talked about worked things through email, to be honest I'm happy as friends, that little extra, example romance is nice, but a added bonus.

I think I will take my time to get to know her better.

[ProfX]

I have noticed one little thing, when I'm in the office and I talk to another woman, she seems to be a little jealous and will give the other person funny looks, I'm not sure what that is all about?!