I think the cute Pakistani guy...

[skypilot]

...at the 7-Eleven is flirting with me. A couple weeks ago we had this odd exchange when I went to the cash register. I'd seen him working their for about a month before this exchange. We'd never had any kind of conversation before this. It went something like this.

Pakistani Guy:So, did you think I wasn't working today?

Me:What?

P G:{i]Did you think I wasn't working today?

Me:What do you mean?

P G:When you came in it seemed as though you didn't see me.

Me:Oh I saw you. I always see you.

Pakistani guy smiles. We've been chatting sort of regularly ever since. He always makes eye contact with me and smiles kind of sheepishly. He told me he thinks I'm nice. Any thoughts?

[cleofus1]

1. ask him

if he wants to go for coffee sometime...it works with women...

[skypilot]

5. The only thing that has stopped me...

...so far is that I've never met a gay man from the Middle East or South Asia or a gay man who is Muslim or Hindu. I worry that I might just be reading the guy completely wrong. Could his eye contact and seemingly flirtatious words just be the way some men in that part of the world relate? Kinda like the way they hold hands in public?

[Misunderestimator]

8. I think you are right to be wary. If he is religious... he may have

a problem with homosexuality... if you don't know for sure he's gay, wait.

[meegbear]

10. I've chatted with one online ...

he's a Pakistani living in Virginia, going to college.

He was asking me about the gay marriage laws here in MA - he wanted to meet a man and get married so he could stay here. Told him I don't think that's gonna work.

[cleofus1]

12. it is kinda touchy....so to speak...

maybe you can ask in a roundabout kinda cheesy way...
be creative! have fun with it....be prepared to run (jokes)...

[redqueen]

Awwwwwwww

:loveya:

[LiberalVoice]

2. Well if you like him...

give it a shot.

[underpants]

3. See if you can get some free Slurpees

:bounce:

[Richardo]

7. .

:spray: That is SO bad.

[Misunderestimator]

11. And corndogs.

[cleofus1]

13. they're just like smoothies

but at a fraction of the price...

[skypilot]

14. Where did we go wrong with you?

:spank:

[underpants]

15. What, you don't like Slurpees?

:shrug:

Who doesn't like Slurpees?

[Misunderestimator]

4. Wow... that's a tough one.

I would be a little wary of coming onto him until you know for sure he is gay or bi, if that's what you're asking. And that would be true of any man you don't know... there's always a potential for misunderstanding and homophobia.

[skypilot]

6. Exactly. See post #5

[Misunderestimator]

9. LOL! I was just responding to post 5!

[gmoney]

16. You could let him know you're gay...

...figure out a way to specifically let him know you're gay, and just see if his attitude changes. If he remains friendly after that, it could be one reason he's here instead of over there... the freedom to be himself.

I'm guessing if he's NOT gay, his cultural bias would prompt a harsh negative reaction from him. But, letting him know you're gay and getting a negative reaction is a LOT safer than making advances towards him -- that could get violent and/or ugly.

[skypilot]

18. Maybe the next time I go in...

...I'll casually plop my copy of the Philadelphia Gay News on the counter. Now that I think of it, maybe I've already done that. I'm not at all self-conscious about it when I'm carrying it around. It's possible that at some point I put it on the counter in front of him while getting money from my pocket. Maybe that's what prompted his initial remarks to me. Or it could just be wishful thinking on my part. Anyway, would you agree that what he said to me was a bit flirty? I mean, why would he care if I saw him or not.

[gmoney]

20. The Gay News is the perfect prop...

...next time, just drop it on the counter (with nothing else) and just casually say "do you ever read this?" That should be a clear enough question without the potential to offend.

>I mean, why would he care if I saw him or not.<

Well, that may be a language barrier thing... he may just think it's common expression of courtesy towards a customer, sort of like "good to see you" when you see someone. (That's my stock response for someone I may or may not have met before, but I can't remember.)

[skypilot]

21. I think I'd rather just...

...drop the paper on the counter and let him see it and then see how he responds to me after that. I don't think asking him directly if he ever reads it is a good idea because if I'm wrong about this guy he might simply respond, "Why the hell would I ever read THAT?!" or something along those lines.

As for your second point about the language barrier, actually his English is quite good. He told me that he lived in New York before coming to Philly. I think he'd have simply said, "Good to see you" if that's what he wanted to convey. I'm not ruling out your theory but I do think that it's a bit of a stretch. He had waited on me quite a few times before this exchange (nothing more than "Hello","That's $4.50","Have a good day") and I thought it was odd that he'd think I'd given any thought to what his schedule might be ("Did you think I wasn't working today?") Guess you had to be there.

[ronnykmarshall]

17. Ask him to show you the "back room".

Sorry I'm a cheap slut.

[skypilot]

19. I almost miss the days...

...when I was one. In those days I would have settle this matter one way or the other by now.