This is so sad.

People waste far too much time obsessing over ifs and maybes and could've beens rather than actually pursuing what they want.

I don't buy this "i'm too shy" or "I don't want to ruin what I've got" crap. You're all just masochists who enjoy the martyred suffering and the thrill/agony of the "it could happen" fantasy rather than actually going through with it and losing the mystique of the impossible and forbidden.

It's one of the amazing things humans can do. Imagine. That story was obviously written just for fun and it's a simple simple way of imagining life "possibilities". There are more complex stuff like Kafka's Metamorphosis. It doesn't mean he's obsessing over "ifs" and "maybes" or beign a masochist, it's just another way of imagining life.
Although I get your point. In real life it's pretty sad, eventhough I consider myself "too shy".