I'm actually glad she doesn't have the "be nice" reflex. Russ reads normal politeness as romantic interest, so it is extremely advisable to shut him down fast and hard. Yes, he'll call you a bitch and whatever, but that seems preferable to weeks or months of him demanding his target's attention. Russ is like those programs you download that install McAffee or some other crap bloatware. You have to explicitly say you don't want it. Russ operates off the assumption that if he hasn't been told to fuck off, he has a chance. Letting a guy down easy doesn't always work. Sometimes you just have be blunt. Rusty doesn't go to clubs or bars, so I wonder if he's ever clumsily hit on a woman and been slapped. Or kneed in the groin. Either is an appropriate response to him not listening to being told no.
Yeah, he doesn't accept no as final. He just keeps hammering away, not realizing how much of a pest he's being, until finally his target blows up and tells him to fuck off. That's what happened with Erika, and even then, she still wanted to get him help. Sometimes, you just gotta be willing to cut someone off and move on.
