The Ides of March have officially passed. That means a lot of things, for a lot of different people. It’s the beginning of spring sports here in LHS, Caesar’s dead, and prom is roughly a month and a half away (as of time of writing).

Gentlemen, if you want to ask a girl to prom, now’s about the time to do so. Heck, your window might have already passed. But, it wouldn’t hurt to give it a shot, right? What could go wrong?

I mean, you don’t necessarily need a date to go to prom. A lot of people are just going with their friends. Which is fine. However, not asking that one girl you like to prom is a missed opportunity.  You see, prom is a great environment to help further a “relationship” with a girl. It’s not like a date, where your intentions are clear, and it’s just the two of you. You both will be able to fall back to your friends if things don’t turn out to be the way you wanted. This makes it low-pressure, while also allowing you to spend a lot more time with the other person.

First things first: consider the situation. How well do you know this girl? I’m gonna go on a limb and assume you guys aren’t dating. If you haven’t asked your girlfriend to prom yet, you’re doing something wrong. Fix it. Anyway, how often do you talk to this girl? Do you have any classes with her? Are you on any teams or clubs with her? Where is her locker relative to yours? When does she stop by it? Do you see her in the hallway anytime?

All of these factors give you windows of opportunity to ask. The less time you see each other, the less of a natural window you have. You’re probably going to have to make a window yourself if time is scarce. Don’t be afraid to text her, if possible.  Don’t ask her over text, but ask her to meet you after a certain class you two have together, or at her locker, or something. Yeah, it’s awkward, but it’s better than nothing.

Make sure she’s not distracted AT ALL. She should be facing you. Not her locker, or her friends, or anybody else. If her friends are there, politely ask  them to talk to her alone. Yes, it’s awkward. Asking her while she’s not particularly paying attention is worse, trust me.

Keep a straight back, maintain eye contact, don’t mumble, and get to the point. Practice in the mirror beforehand. Be confident. Be cool. It’s not that big of a deal. Just say: “Hey, I was wondering… since you’re not going to prom with anybody, if you could go to prom with me?”

Somethig like that.

Now, there’s a couple of ways this could go. First off, she could say no. Maybe she already has plans with somebody else, maybe she’s not going to prom at all, maybe she simply she doesn’t want to go to prom with you . Whatever the answer, she said no. I’m sorry. Life will suck for a week or two, but you’ll be fine. Pick yourself back up, and feel proud about what you did. You faced the odds straight up, and that’s always respectable.

Also, don’t make her feel bad about saying no, regardless of her excuse. Don’t lambast her on social media, or to your friends, or whatever.

Now that’s outta the way, there’s the second option: she says yes. CONGRATULATIONS. You faced the odds, and you WON. Be cool about it. Don’t, like, run down the other hallway shouting YES YES THANK GOD YES. That would be stupid. Contain your excitement. You can talk details and stuff later. That’s for you to figure out now.