Basic Trope: Two characters are attracted to each other, but neither has the nerve to say anything about it.
- Straight: Alice and Bob meet each other through the anime club and hit it off right away, but neither has the social skills to tell if the other is interested too.
- Exaggerated: The show makes a Running Gag of Alice and Bob both getting completely flustered and inarticulate in each other's presence and everyone else trying to get either of them to make a move.
- Downplayed:
- Alice and Bob both separately ask Claire to go feel out the other and see if they might be interested in dating.
- Alice and Bob's relationship moves at a slow but steady pace, with a casual date offer being given the drama associated with a marriage proposal.
- Justified:
- Deborah and Emily are both interested in each other, but they're both worried about being outed if they say anything and are wrong.
- Alice and Bob are both horribly awkward and/or have been rejected many times in the past.
- Inverted:
- Alice and Bob have been dating for a while, but it's not working out ... but neither of them wants to hurt the other by breaking up.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension
- Subverted:
- Alice is actually in a relationship already, and her attraction to Bob is just a short-lived fantasy (which is why neither tried to make any advances to the other).
- Alice and Bob both blurt out a Love Confession to one another... in the most hilarious, awkward and adorable way possible.
- Double Subverted:
- Even after breaking up with her boyfriend, Alice continues to pine hopelessly after Bob. And neither have the courage to approach the other, even though they're both "free".
- Because Alice and Bob spoke at the same time, neither actually heard what the other was saying, and both were to shy to repeat the confession.
- Parodied: Alice and Bob each have a limited edition collectible figurine that the other wants — but neither of them want to ask the other to give theirs up.
- Zig Zagged: Alice tries to ask Bob out, but chickens out halfway through. Bob doesn't take the hint, and chickens out himself halfway through his own attempt later. At several points, Claire assumes or questions whether or not either one succeeded.
- Averted: Alice and Bob meet each other through the anime club and hit it off right away, and immediately ask each other out and start a relationship.
- Enforced: Alice and Bob are the central Will They or Won't They? characters of the series, and the creators want to prevent them from actually getting together to milk their dynamic for all their worth.
- Lampshaded: Claire makes several snarky remarks to other characters regarding Alice and Bob's Will They or Won't They?, pointing out how they are Twice Shy.
- Invoked: Claire introduces Alice and Bob and lets them dither, either for the lulz or to demonstrate this trope to curious friends.
- Exploited: Charlie introduces Alice and Bob and lets them dither, intending to take advantage of their preoccupation with each other and their inability to confess in order to freely execute his master plan without interruption.
- Defied: Claire writes a letter to each of them telling them to ask each other out.
- Discussed: Aerith and Claire, noticing the behaviour of Alice and Bob, talk with each other about how they continue to dither, discussing the hows and whys in regards to their mutual shyness.
- Conversed: Jerry and Elaine mock these kinds of characters after seeing an example of them in a show, noting how unhappy they're making themselves.
- Played For Drama: Due to their shyness, Alice and Bob avoid eye contact and interacts minimally with each other when they actually encounter. This cause one, or both, to think that the other person actually hates them because they seem much friendlier when they're with other people.
- Untwisted: Alice's aggressive Tsundere attitude turns out to be a façade, making her just as shy as meek Bob.
Back to Twice Shy.
