How should I handle my guy roommate's shy crush?

ruzhen
So, I'm living abroad in an Asian country, and I ended up sharing a two-bedroom apartment with a guy roommate. I didn't really want a guy roommate, but I needed a roommate and there seem to be A LOT more foreign guys than girls in Asia. Anyway, things have been mostly okay (no weirdness sharing a bathroom or walking around in the nude). He's pretty at-sea living in Asia, and he often tries to lean on my language skills to get things done (which gets old fast). Initially, I tried to show him the best local spots and offered survival tips now and then. Now he's a bit clingy, and I'm starting to get the feeling that my roomie has a shy crush on me. He laughs at almost everything I say, and he tried to put his arm around me once when we were watching a movie. Besides me being a huge commitophobe in general, I'm completely uninterested in the guy physically or personality-wise. We don't have many common interests and his naivete about most things makes me feel like his big sister. Ugh.

I guess I just assumed that he would understand that his female roommate is "off-limits" because I'm his ROOMMATE. Now I feel stupid for not setting him straight on the issue before he moved in. It took me a while to realize that he's an idealistic, oblivious guy who doesn't immediately take no for an answer. A few weeks ago, he told me it was his New Year's resolution to find a girlfriend. I told him he could have his pick of local girls, and he told me that he wanted a non-Asian, hard-to-get girlfriend. There aren't many non-Asian girls here and he doesn't get out much. So who could that mean, hmm? Later in the conversation, I told him I was very happy being single and then changed the subject. New Years was also really weird. We were supposed to meet up with a few of his friends, but then he purposefully avoided them. Never going out on the town with him again. Shame on me for assuming it would be okay. It feels like he's romanticizing our roommate situation, and I'm really starting to resent his awkward behavior around me. Home is the one place where I can retreat into my American bubble and let my guard down. I feel like I can't even talk to him without encouraging this puppy-love crush. And then I feel like a heartless bitch for feeling so resentful.

Recently, I've been spending as little time with the guy as I can. Not talking about our weird Asia experiences or going on foreign food expeditions together. Watching a movie at home or sharing an occasional meal are also out. I try to be polite and semi-friendly. Hopefully he'll get over this crush and stop the giggling. Confronting him about it would be super-awkward since he's fairly shy and inarticulate anyway. Any other suggestions? Maybe I can introduce him to a nice girl, eh? And hey, if all else fails, I'm the one on the lease, so I have final say on who lives here.
How should I handle my guy roommate's shy crush?
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