Here's How To Decode Your Date's Body Language, According To An Expert
A first date is really a strange encounter with the other person. You don't know the person sitting across you from the table in the intimate way that allows you to read the faces of your long-standing friends and loved ones. Still, as human beings, we do all share a primal method of communication. Seemingly meaningless gestures like the position of a person's hands or the way their torso tilts are actually age-old indicators of what's going on in a person's head. Knowing how to read your date's body language can offer some clues into their experience.
Elite Daily asked body language expert Traci Brown to offer some general indicators to look out for on a first date. It's important to keep in mind that, while we may share the same universal signals of enthusiasm or discomfort, the only person who really knows what's going on in your date's head is your date. A first date is obviously way too soon to ask somebody, "What are you really thinking?" But the only way to find out whether or not your date wants to see you again is to either extend an invitation or see if they call. Because more than anything, playing the field involves a lot of wait and seeing. And who's to say that's a bad thing?
But if your date makes one of these gestures, they're probably crushing on you at the very least.
1. They Scratch Their Face
According to Brown, when people get butterflies in their stomach, it causes capillaries in their face to swell, which makes their face itch slightly. "If he scratches his face a little more often than he would around his buddies, it’s a sure sign he’s into you," Brown says.
If someone is holding their hands up to their face, that can also be a sign of blossoming shyness or nerves associated with a crush. People who are feeling vulnerable will touch their face with their fingers, human behavior expert Susan Constantine-Perfido told Elite Daily.
2. Their Feet Are Pointed Toward You
People tend to point their toes in the direction where they want to go, according to Brown. If you're sitting across the table from your date, and they have one foot pointed to the door, it might mean that you should skip dessert because they're halfway out of the restaurant already. Unless you've already started talking about a nightcap at one of your places, your date is splitting off and doesn't deserve more of your time.
"If his feet are pointed at you, that’s a sign he likes you," says Brown. It might not be enough evidence to build a whole case for a relationship, but you can get your dessert and stay for coffee, too.
3. Hearts In Their Eyes
Of course, the human eye is incapable of filling up with cartoon hearts and kissy lips the moment they see something beautiful. Too bad, because if we were all animated mice and ducks, romance would come with way less time spent reading between the lines.
Think of the pupil as a substitute for one of those classic cartoon hearts. Noticing the size of another person's pupils takes some time to get a feel for. "But if you watch closely," Brown says, "his pupils will dilate when he's looking at you and get smaller when he looks away."
This is because the pupils in our eyes always dilate when we look at things we cherish. And unless there's a puppy being held up directly behind your head, when your date looks at you and their pupils get bigger, that means they cherish you!
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