It’s that look guys give girls when they stare into your eyes as they laugh or smile and you know that guy is thinking about what he wants to do to you naked, or what you look like naked, how much he likes your cleavage, and – for you romantics out there – maybe he’s thinking how much he likes talking to you.

If you’re trying to convince a girl that you are a good guy, this prolonged eye contact will lead to an epic fail. It makes a girl think you are either a creeper who is way too interested in her or you are a player looking to slay his next unicorn. (Expand your vocabulary: Look it up at urbandictionary.com.)

Recently, I had a conversation with a friend who is coming to a very common crossroad in life. He’s making the switch from “horny-jerk-who-hits-on-every-girl-in-the-bar-until-he finds-the-one-to-go-home-with” to “sensitive-law-student-who-is-ready-to-have-a-real-relationship.”

He called me for advice on how to approach this apparently stunning girl, whom he has crushed on since he entered Northwestern. I gathered my friend is starting out in the early stages of the serious-relationship-quest by taking the “just friends” approach. He asked for my help on how to start this process. Here was my advice:

“Keep her pants on while you are talking to her.”

This applies not only literally, but figuratively too.

It’s simple, but very powerful if you have decided to brave this journey into emotional territory.

Sex with your eyes is a fabulous little trick for the bars, but like tequila shots, it makes your clothes come off and should not be used before happy hour.

For girls, not-so-subtle staring is just plain tacky. We’ve all seen it in the movies: Girl bats her eyelashes; cut to next scene and boy and girl are sharing a romantic goodnight kiss.

While it doesn’t usually happen like that in real life, it can lead to some rewarding outcomes, depending on your end-of-the-night goals. It can be a highly effective tool in indicating your intentions.

After consulting some familiar Northwestern playboys, I came to an indecisive conclusion on the implications of females using this trick. In a bar setting, it can give the guy the OK and lets him know, “Hey, I’m down if you are.” But when you’re working with the one-track mind of a guy, you might give him the wrong idea if you’re just looking for a good flirt.

This is when guy intuition comes into play. Guys, you can usually use your other five senses to figure out if a girl is DTF or looking to settle down. Girls usually aren’t thinking how great you’d look without pants, but hey, every girl is different.

The moral of this story is that we’re all thinking about having sex. As sex genius Ryan Reynolds says, play the whole thing aloof and you’ll seal the deal.

Medill junior Jill Mahen can be reached at [email protected].