The main character in Can't hardly Wait is such a loser

I hadn't seen this movie in ages so gave it a go a few days ago. It was enjoyable, had some truly funny parts, but oh wow I had forgotten about how much a pathetic loser the lead played by ethan embry is. Let's see:

-JLH transfers to school and he's immediately enraptured by her. That's normal of course. He thinks it's fate that they both ate poptarts and she sat near him but he doens't get to show her around school and somehow has "missed his chance".
-Over the next FOUR YEARS they dont't even speak or interact with each other (more on that later). They are essentially total strangers yet Preston has continued his infatuation with her.
-He writes some love letter (contents unknown to viewer) before teh big party at graduation night. Knowing him it was something sappy about how they connect on an emotional level or something.
-Prior to the party he thinks it's fate for them to be together because the song "Mandy" comes on the radio.
-So they're at the party, he's sitting next to her, then instead of talking or speakign like a normal person and telling how he feels he just sits there like a mute and ends up missing the chance again.



-Towards the end she's storming out pissed at the world. He calls her name from the balcony, for some reason says he loves her, and she turns around and he looks like he's had a heart attack. The mere fact that she simply cast her gaze in his direction was enough to practically give him a stroke


-Prior to the stormout she has read his letter, but doesn't know who Preston Meyer is. Let that sink in...freshman year they sat next to each other in class every day. They are seniors now. Over 4 years, they have had so few interactions and he's left such minimal impact on her life she didn't even know HIS NAME or face or who the frick he is. She finds a yearbook and puts 2 and 2 together and races to the train station.

-Now this isn't as much a critique of preston anymore so much as the movie in general, but holy cow. The tone of this is that he's leaving and now they've really missed their chance. The viewer assumes he's going away for a long time somehwere an may not be back. Come to find out he's only going to a fricking writing workshop! He'll be back in days! Yet he delays his train, they spend the next 7 hours together, and although he has made ZERO impression on her for 4 years, he's now made SUCH an impression that she writes letters to him EVERY DAY he's gone. And of course they are still together into the future according to the little character notes. It's a slap in the face IMO.