Edit: I should add that this post is not only about building attraction but MAINTAINING it.

Took a class last semester at a local university and my lab partner was incredibly attractive. I'm talking nice body, blue eyes, clumsy, great personality. I saw her in lecture from the start and fate had us as lab partners once a week for three hours.

Not to exaggerate it but I simply could not stop thinking about this girl. I looked forward to seeing her every week and it was so hard to not express too much interest. I wanted to text her first and escalate with kino but every time I didn't and held off. The semester was 12 weeks and I treated it like a marathon to build attraction and gauge interest. Here is what I learned:

1. Don't always be available

I always had something to do whether it was studying, going to the gym, or hanging out with friends. I feel like a lot of guys switch their whole schedule around to see and hang out with people but I made it a priority to have priorities and goals to complete each day. If she had a question, she could ask me when she saw me in the gym. If she texted me, I told her I was busy and that I would see her in class. If she needed help, I would simply say we can study together and that I'm not going to tutor you. I also didn't text her all the time and would never be the last one to text her. If I texted her it was to organize a meetup, never to build a relationship/attraction.

2. Escalate WISELY

I didn't want to escalate too quickly at the risk of getting rejected and having to deal with an awkward situation the rest of the semester. I had to be strategic and gauge her interest over 12 weeks. At first I tried to brush her off and not think too much of her but after awhile I couldn't help but but be attracted to her. I started small with touching her hand and guiding it through experiments, touching her shoulder when I talked to her, or doing dumb clumsy shit like untying her shoes. I slowly gauged this by asking her to workout with me in the gym when I saw her. I ended up spotting her for certain workouts where I would touch her hips, hold her legs/hands, and would help her stretch a few times per week.

3. Build comfort

There are several ways to do this and it doesn't always have to be through showering them with compliments or being their personal diary. The best way to build comfort is through laughter and joking around. I never tried to impress her either but slowly introduced more things about me when brought up in conversation. I would joke around with statements like "I hate you" or "I never want to see you again" or use general sarcasm. I would also push/pull a lot by saying things like "I liked you way more before you said that" or "Just when I was starting to like you, you go and do that." And I would be choosy with compliments talking about her outfit that day or sense of humor. Things she had control over and not about her body like her eyes or figure.

4. Be a gravitational pull

I'm not sure what to label this as but you have to have a mission of some sort. I talked about my goals of going to graduate school and living in a certain state with a certain career with certain hobbies. I wasn't super specific but I had a direction. It also helped that I would crush class and the gym. I would always be owning my shit asking questions in class, lifting the most in the gym, and being straightforward in my intentions whenever I was with her or around her: "We have 30 minutes to get through this" or "You have 15 minutes to ask me a question because I have to eat and then do this" etc. This also builds off of point one.

Overall, at the end of the semester I asked her on a date and she said yes. I ended up making out with her right outside the lab we spent the whole semester in shortly after. The entire time leading up to that she would say things like "Why are you so mysterious" or "You don't seem like you cry a lot (lol)" and other things adding to the fact that I was choosy with what I put out into the world and how I portrayed myself to her. I was on cloud nine as this girl thought I was totally disinterested the entire time but I was calculated enough to not portray that. I made myself scarce and stayed true to the path. I went to every lab and lecture to learn and have fun, not impress this girl. If she didn't talk to me or laugh at a joke I wouldn't care because I knew that at the end of the day my mission was being completed in progress.

I used to always talk about myself and pour out my whole life in an attempt to impress girls and hope that they would bite on something I said if I just kept talking. I realized this doesn't build attraction but makes you seem boring and too available. I am a pretty talkative and loud person so to be considered 'mysterious' was a big compliment to me. This time around I would be scarce with information, always joke, accept the awkward silence, promote eye contact, and stay true to my mission. I never made her a priority but instead a complement to my day.

TL;DR: Had extremely attractive lab partner and had to build attraction over three months and not fuck it all up. Ended up hooking up with her and dating for awhile. I followed the four points just mentioned and learned a lot throughout the process.