20 people recount hilarious ways their crushes missed their very obvious hints

Many women know the frustration of men missing clear signals that indicate interest. Social conditioning can lead men to overlook these subtle cues, which often go unnoticed without keen observation.  As a result, men might go about their daily routines, oblivious to these hints, leaving women wondering why their signals aren’t being picked up. Typically, men tend to notice only the most direct signs.

When men miss these signals, it can lead to some pretty funny situations. Even when they do notice, they often don’t know how to respond, leading to missed romantic opportunities and misunderstandings. Sometimes, women have to be very direct about their feelings before men understand. u/Jason-iscool asked, "Women of Reddit, what hints have you given your crush that they missed?" Here are 20 of the funniest responses. 

1. Volunteering to help out in the kitchen 

My mother-in-law met my father-in-law when they both worked at a pizza place as teenagers. She was really into him so she'd go in on her nights off "to help slice tomatoes and onions" and dropped hints to him for MONTHS but he never picked up on any of it. One night she'd brought Hershey kisses and went to put them in the cooler, and asked if he'd like his kisses cold. He said "actually, I prefer warm kisses" so she said "okay" and kissed him. That was when he realized she liked him. She blushes when she tells the story, as she admits that was very unlike her but her gut said to go for it. They've been married for 40 years. - u/Nikkomus

2. Rejected a kiss 

We snuggled all night watching a movie together. Then, when he went to leave, I tried to kiss him goodbye, but he rejected it and drove away.  Dejected, I went back to my room to sulk. He calls me 10 minutes later asking to meet me outside. I get outside and he shouts in disbelief, “Wait, were you trying to kiss me? Does that mean you like me?” Boy had legit driven away and called his friend because he was confused and thought I was giving mixed messages about liking him or not. - u/ChangMinny

3. Confused about a compliment 

I bartended and I waved the tab of a regular and when I told him his drinks were on me, he made the joke “Bet you say that to all the pretty girls." I said “Drinks are only waved for hot people the bartender has a crush on.” And he looked SO CONFUSED and said he was “Honored to be the exception to that rule.” - u/littlebluebird555

4. Being completely shocked days later 

I once asked a guy if I could kiss him (we had been hanging out in a way that was conducive to that) and he said yes. I kissed him. It was great. But then we just parted ways in a natural way. Three days later, this man calls me all shocked that I was hitting on him. He told a friend about the interaction and they had to point it out. Sir, I literally kissed you. - u/ImFireMario

5. Sending out the wrong signals 

Well, in high school my hints were to act like I couldn’t stand the guy and that they were the person I found most annoying/un-crushable in the whole school. Shockingly misinterpreted, every time. No idea why. - u/kitkat1122

6. Direct indications 

I'm not good at picking up hints, but one hint I didn't miss was when she stepped over the table at a crowded pub and sat in my lap facing me. - u/vacri

7. Not doing it out of fear 

Was talking to a girl at a bar and the conversation turned to kissing. I asked her how do I know a girl is ready to kiss me and she said you have to grab her by the back of her neck and pull her towards yourself. I was stunned in that moment thinking, this is something she might want me to do but it is also assault and it could get me into trouble. Couldn't do it in the end as I was paralysed with fear of consequences. I wish I had done it, in hindsight. - u/Wrong_Winter_3502

8. Noticing the small details 

He asked me directly "Can you give me one clue on who your crush is?" I just looked into his eyes for a while and said he had brown eyes. He didn’t get it until he looked in the mirror.  It worked out fine though. We've been dating for a year now.  - u/Sea-Presence6809

9. Blanket sharing 

Guy here. My now wife and I were at a friend's for a kick back. It was time to go to bed and we were not going to drive home as we both had a drink or two. There was only one blanket. I let her have the blanket and the bigger couch. It took an hour for me to understand that she kept offering to share the blanket and the biggest couch in a non platonic way. I kept saying it was fine and I was comfortable where I was. If she gave up and stopped trying to convince me that we could share the blanket I would have no idea where we would be lmao. - u/UberTwinkle

10. Stargazing together 

We would sleep in the same bed together (like literally sleeping) whenever we’d stay over at each other’s place, as opposed to someone sleeping on the couch. I would make active efforts to cuddle with him whenever possible. I’m known for being a very reserved and definitely not a touchy-feely person, and he was always the exception. We literally stargazed together. I thought I couldn’t be more obvious. Apparently, he had no idea I was into him, and refused to believe his friends when they’d tell him that I was super into him and he should ask me out. Don’t worry, we’ve been together for a few years now! - u/GJ-504-b

11. Snuggling during a movie 

Snuggled close to him during a movie. Told him I was cold (I was not). He offered me his hoodie. So I assumed he wasn’t interested. 20 minutes later he did the bulls*** yawn and stretch move, before casually putting his arm around me. I was like “Are you KIDDING?!” A discussion was had. - Reddit

12. Brushing hands 

Went on a first date with a guy and it was going really well so I kept brushing my hand against his while we were walking together. I think I did this six or seven times. Didn't get the hint. Six months later we're dating and I mention this from our first date and he said "I had absolutely no idea." - u/ThrowRARAw

13. Not even getting the hint after requesting a date 

All of them. It literally took me blatantly asking him out on a date for him to get it and even after that he tried to convince himself that I was just using the term “as a friend.” Luckily, he’s figured it out and we’re very happy now. - u/Hondas_The_Odessy

14. Not making plans with anyone else 

What finally worked for me was my excellent line: "You know, we have been making a lot of plans to hang out together, and seem to be making a few more. So I just want to tell you I am not going to make plans with anyone else." He got the point by the end of the day, and we've been together 12 years! - u/GinaTRex

15. Driving six hours to spend time with him 

I drove six hours to spend Memorial weekend with him. During my stay I told him he could sleep in his room with me instead of the couch. While cuddling I had my arm thrown over him and my face mere centimeters from his. Never made a move, wasn't untill I was back home that he asked. We celebrate our two year anniversary next month. - u/ryssa_rayne

16. Running out of the car 

Not a woman, but I reconnected with my high school crush at a bar randomly one night. We spent all night talking and driving around town. Finally, I drove her back to her car so she could go home and as she was getting out she kissed my cheek and then got out of my car faster than the dukes of hazard. I was so confused, I thought she ran off because she was embarrassed or something. Didn’t realize until after dating her for two years that when she was running, she was asking me to chase. - u/United_Mongoose_3772

17. Pandas also don't get it 

Not my story, but there was a female panda that would walk backwards into a male panda repeatedly. The male panda did not understand and just kept eating his bamboo. - u/Bouncecat

18. Spent a night together in the middle of the desert 

I was freezing (we were in the middle of the desert at night in the back of his truck) so I asked him to lay on top of me, I told him his eyes were beautiful, asked him if he ever wanted to have kids. Cuddled him all night, and even after all that I was still the one to have to let him know lol. We're married now so it all turned out eventually. - u/run_shorty_run7

19. Texting him right after a breakup 

Breaking up with my boyfriend and texting him that I had broken up with my boyfriend right after I did it. In his defense, there hadn't been any flirtation or obvious romantic hints between us. In my defense, I broke up with my boyfriend as soon as I realized I had feelings for someone else. In both of our defenses, we are now married. This was 13 years ago when we were in our teens. - u/Magnaflorius

20. Sharing a tent 

I literally asked this guy that had been flirting with me for a month, at a camping trip, if he wanted to sleep in my tent with me that night. He said “Yeah, right” in a joking matter. That sucked lol. He told me the next day that he was kicking himself that he didn’t realize in the moment what I was implying. I was kinda over it at that point to be honest so nothing happened anyway. - u/Eggs4DannyD