Changing colours

Okay so basically theres this boy I met in college, when I first saw him I was really freaked out. Mainly because he looked so intimidating I was dreading having to ever speak to him, I wished so badly I didnt have to be in a group with him but as luck had it I was in his group so out of politeness I spoke to him, he was really defensive and aloof. I was so not bothered but I remained polite, anyhow him and his friend started making crude jokes so I got annoyed and started arguing with them but because I dont like holding grudges I spoke to them after that anyway and they both started teasing me which was irritating. So in my other class I realise hes there and we ended up sitting near eachother, I thought I'd get to know him better so I spoke to him. I saw him again in the first class but he pretended he didn't know he was in my group which made me laugh so I started smiling at him, he smiled back, oddly enough and it was like a private joke i suppose. Anyway after those lessons we sat next to eachother in class just because it ended up happening and we spoke a bit, but it was always me initiating conversation, he was still very ALOOF and cold. After a while he suddenly stop sitting near me and he completely ignored me, this kind of baffled me because I thought we were friends. The thing is despite HIM moving he always stared at me like I had moved which was funny, then he came back to sitting near me but hardly spoke. I didn't think much of it, after a while I wasn't bothered much I would talk but not a lot then I started realising he would stare at me in class, if he was opposite me I would find him watching me and I often ignored it but after a while I started staring back kind of confused at what was going on really. He would have these intense gazes which kind of threw me especially because his eyes were so dark and protruding, I almost always looked away embarrassed. I wondered if i liked him, anyway I thought if he did it would be best to show I might be interested too so I started smiling more often at him. A few times when we werent sitting next to each other he would make silly faces to make me laugh. Soon enough we were seated side by side in that class all the time and the class pretty much knew never to sit in those seats as they were 'ours'. As funny as that sounds it was true. So we started talking a lot more and I made him contribute to the work, ALOT of things happened but it's too much to write so I'll write the most significant ones. On one occasion we were doing group work but it we were both ignoring the other members immersed in conversation, I had been talking about animals and at this he showed me a picture of his cat, I brushed his hand lightly and he laughed nervously after admiring the cat I told him we would do the work "together" he laughed and agreed, I felt like I had made a breakthrough because he had never been so eager before then we both checked each others answers and it felt so comfortable I suppose it was because I was right near him; my arm casually went across his while I looked at his answers and it didn't feel awkward. Another time I found him just smiling at me while I had been laughing when i said "What?" he shook his head and laughed, I often found him doing that which made me wonder. The last occasion I will mention is one where we were split up for group work, I told him I didn't want to move to which he replied, 'don't stay here', in a soft tone, I felt like it meant something more but I said I couldnt because it would be wrong to not move when I had been told to (yes I am a goody goody) so then we were separated and he was put ina group with a really pretty girl, obviously I felt slightly jealous but I ignored it. He had no attachments to me. I had laughing from the group and as I turned, expecting him to be looking longingly into the girl's eyes I found him staring at me intently, I felt my face go pink, wondering if he knew what I was thinking. So anyway after that we were always with eachother in class and then after that he winked at me one time when i saw him outside of class, I suspected it didn't mean anything mainly because it was just messing around. He did it another time and i smiled. So anyway this happened for about three months and we became quite close, and he wasnt so mysterious anymore. The thing is he was known in class as the 'badboy', strolling in and on his phone alot. The teacher often got annoyed with him, we were polar opposites. I always paid attention, anyway one time he told me he had hurt his hand and I replied affectionately telling him to check it out, I am pretty sure the boy next to him was giving us funny looks, but truthfully i could not give a damn. Now for the sad bit, I started getting irritated with him because although he was opening up more he still acted so nonchalant which annoyed me because he did it to appear cool. Anyway I stopped speaking to him one time which really annoyed him he directly confronted me about it and we kind of had a argument anyway he kept trying to make me talk and in the end i started talking to him again. So I still felt kind of annoyed with him mainly because he ignored me outside whenever I saw him with his friends so I decided I would move away from him. (This lasted for three months or so) I changed seats and although i felt bad i stuck to it. We stared at eachother alot and i often felt like going backt to sit with him, but i didnt. This went on for a good four months right until exams and every lesson I learned more about his ego problems. He was so prideful! In a movie we watched he commented to the teacher that 'the guy shouldn't run after girls'. (Not exact comment) Anyway I also noticed that I had to talk to him alot before he ever initiated conversation it was only after like a month did he start to make conversation, I thought he was bad news anyway so I concentrated on my work. But I couldn't help it he started talking in class more and he started showing that he was smart, he knew so much, even the teacher was surprised. He started talking about randoms laws passed and honestly I think I was missing him even more because of this. We were both distant from eachother so anyway I kept wishing he would come up to me but he didnt. I realised I had left him and he would never come up to me, mainly because he would see it as me rejecting him and coming up to me would make him look desperate. Whenever I saw him with his friends they always smiled and I wondered if they knew, honestly they never did this before. I also found out from a friend that he had been trying really hard in his other classes and that he had a job. My impressions of him were changing I realised he wasn't as bad as i thought. Near to the end of exams I noticed he would hold doors open for me and even if he was about to go out of class if I was there he would go back and open the door for me. Even on the bus he would wait for me to go on. Then another time I hadnt been in class and when we saw eachother he literally just stopped and stared. So on the exam I found myself staring at him losing concenration in my exam. I eventually got back to it and the last exam we had for that class I was wishing to see him again. That last exam I saw him near the busstop but he didnt get on his bus, as I was walking past slowly in the rain our eyes met and I suppose we still had the spark. Despite it being over 4 months since we had spoken. He waited like a gentleman for me to go on the bus eventhough he was already about to get on, so i was standing on the bus and all of a sudden he asks me how the exam was. I was so surprised i responded happily but i realised his tone was different it was soft and open. There was no games, or smirks. His face expression was friendly and vulnerable i have to say. We spoke about exams and then he said take care before he left. I don't know what this means given the history I think it means more but am I overreacting? I honestly felt so happy he spoke to me but I have no idea if he just spoke to me because he was happy about the exam or he just wanted to talk. Should i move back next to him? Does he like me? I have no idea! This is irrelevant but he reminds me so much of Landon Hues from A Walk To Remember :P. Hes really good looking with a dark mysterious look and he has a good dress sense I get insecure thinking why would he like me? Also I know he has a lot of girl mates. Well compared to other girls I do not dress very normal. I wear whatever, mostly baggy clothes, but sometimes I wear ribbons and pastel colours, I also act like a doof, nearly always laughing so I wonder maybe this is a joke? I get paranoid easily hah. So please give me some advice! Should I start talking to him again?

This is really simple. Ask him if he wants to go out with you and a group of friends. If he goes out with your friends talk to him and see if he and you hit it off. If so ask if he wants to go to your place or to a movie or to eat in a few days. If he will not see you with friends and nothing lost. If he does but does not talk to you alone, nothing lost. You have your answer without anyone losing face.