he had that look you very rarely find: the haunting, haunted kind.

[dragonladyflame]

This past Wednesday, early in the afternoon, I was at work at the lovely Bookstore Y when I saw a man in the doorway. The door was standing open, and he was just ... standing there; not even in the shop, but on the doorstep, gazing at the books piled in front of the counter. He literally stood there for something like 15 minutes before coming

Comments

[static_eddie]

I think you should trust your dual impression here. He does sound like he's on a different plane while simultaneously not a rotten person.

Your description, along with the books he purchased, gives me cause to wonder if he might not have severe form of Asperger's Syndrome... based on the small sample you've been given, language seems to be his obsession. However, I fear that Aspergers and Autism are popular umbrella issues.

Maybe he suffers from a serious social anxiety (fair description)... and maybe the book store visit is a form of active therapy? That would make a lot of sense to me... The prolonged entry, hovering around the same shelves for hours and not acknowledging the costumer in line. He might not be able to make decisions as quickly as most people because those decisions will lead to direct social interaction

[dragonladyflame]

Thank you! I'll do my best.

I actually did consider Asperger's at the time, but he seems way past all the cases of Asperger's I've ever encountered, and I've seen some bad ones.

[likeasailor]

you should call me! i'd be happy to keep you company/walk you home, look around bookstore y, and see this creepy kid firsthand. is it possible he's a UofC student who has been driven mad by finals?

[dragonladyflame]

I might just take you up on that if he comes in again. I don't think he's a student ... I don't get the student vibe, I guess I can't explain it any better than that. But hey, I can't figure his vibe at all, so he might be.

[heliograph]

"why'd he do it at all?"

Because you smiled at him?

"what do I do?"

Ask him out? More seriously, you haven't said anything about his age: he's clearly not a child, or you wouldn't be worried about him. How old do you think he is? Teens? 20s? 30s? Does he look like he's been sleeping in his clothes? Is he stinky? Hair combed and/or styled?

He's bought stuff from the shop, so you can't have the police haul him off because he hasn't purchased anything. If I were you, I'd engage him in shop keeper-customer speak: can you help him find something, did he enjoy his dictionaries, etc. to let him know that you know he's there and that you're actually a human being and not an abstraction. Don't touch him, though, and remember that many many guys think that if you're nice to them you want to date 'em.

It is entirely possible he's got no where else to go, and since you didn't shoo him away he stuck around and then came back.

[dragonladyflame]

I suck at guessing age. Early 20s, I guess. Thank you for the advice. He apparently isn't easy to get to talk -- he put some books on hold over the weekend when I wasn't here, and the manager (also disconcerted by him) said he was reeeeally reluctant to give his name.