Falling in love with someone I don't know?

So, lately everything in my life feels unreal because I'm hung up on this guy. It all started a while ago. You see, next year I'm hoping to get into med school so I need the best grades I can get. I used to date a guy who I'd been seeing for three years and I broke it off to focus on my studies. It is sincerely what I love. But there is this guy in my class who I feel really attracted to. I feel guilty for feeling this way about him as I really don't think I'm cut for a relationship right now. However, I think about him A LOT and I really feel desperate for him. The worst part is, this boy has said maybe 20 words to me since the school year started. And I'm so shy that he probably thinks that I' not worthy of his time. I don't know what to do. I feel intoxicated.

First thing to do should probably stop feeling like you're not worthy of his time (by thinking that about him, it's what you feel about yourself). Then you should either 1) confront your feelings and let them evolve while being aware of the consequences (either he feels similar things or he doesn't, but either way it can affect how much time you have to study), or 2) put all of that aside and keep studying.

What are you attracted to? I'm no expert, but I would say if you really feel you are "falling in love" with him, it is probably mostly your imagination using him as a template to fill the void left after your relationship ended. I remember a lot of the times I was single I would latch onto a crush and blow it into a huge fantasy relationship in my head. These "crushes" though were people I barely knew, but for whatever reason caught my attention.

If this is anything like you're feeling, then these are my thoughts. First, you shouldn't feel guilty about anything. Nothing malicious about having a crush on someone, it happens to the best of us. And that being said, it's completely ok for a crush to stay a crush, to keep your distance and focus on school while he enters your mind when you have late thoughts. If you do think you might want to see if it could go somewhere, go ahead and talk to him! Sit next to him in class, add him on facebook, whatever way you feel comfortable imitating contact. If that is what you want to do though, do yourself a favor and do a reality check first. You haven't really talked to him, you don't really know him, and it could very easily happen that you guys don't click. From afar he can be anyone you want him to be, but up close and personal he's going to already have an array of traits that make him up.

Thank you both so much for your replies. They made me think about what's going on from a whole new perspective. The thing is, that he is the friendly guy that everyone is friends with, everyone except... me. I am so shy I could never imagina talking to him. The only times in which he's talked to me, I've felt like I was going to faint. I am the book worm of the class, which does not bother me since I have worked really hard for many years to achieve what I've achieved, but it still hurts to know that the person you think about throughout the whole day is never going to see you the way you see him. I agree with Sacrament in your two options, but I don't know which is the most convenient.... And as for AlienGeranium, I also agree that I might just be falling for the idea I made up about him in my own head. It's just all so confusing, and it hurts so bad to see him flirt with other girls...

Maybe it's a whole platonic thing where you have a crush on him because you "know" you can't have him, the kind of thing that dissipates once you do get to have his attention. Maybe your feelings toward him occur because you look up to/admire him for his confidence and unattainability.