My perspective is from a male viewpoint, but I started dating when I was 16. I tended to date girls based on out mutual similarities or interests, a somewhat vague criteria.
The first girl I dated broke up with me because she felt I was cold and distant, I had attempted to kiss her on the cheek once, but it was awkward afterward.
The second girl I dated when I was about 20, and I talked to her online for about 6 months and we met for a comic convention for a week, but we only kissed once and played video games most of the time, we broke up shortly after that and she went back to her last boyfriend (she noted she wanted someone more aggressive as well). I felt pretty numbed by the experience and missed her greatly and couldn't stand to talk to her online anymore. I figured I would eventually look again or just resign myself to being a hermit (happily, but lonely).
Five years later I met my now wife at my workplace and began dating a few months after, we started off at a coffee shop sharing our life stories and they mirrored mine almost perfectly, and both had a passion for animals. We moved onto dinner, bowling, and a movie. We dated about once every week from there and were engaged two months later because we were so enthralled and often finished each other sentences and had the same thoughts (really random ones, like this picture at the flea market of Abe Lincoln looked to us more like Michael Jackson). We have been married now for a year and a half and are quite happy with eachother and work together on our weaknesses. She has more anger problems with people, which tend to make me anxious, but she also finds it hard to deal with my need for personal time since she draws disability and I work 8 hours a day, leaving not a lot of room for intimacy outside of weekends. We both suspect we are on the spectrum.
I wouldn't advise you to date just to fit in, but it is nice to have a partner to help and recieve help from day to day.
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BAP: 103 aloof / 100 rigid / 103 pragmatic
AQ: 40 EQ: 8 SQ: 114
Aspie: AS-156/200 NT-56/200
RAADS-R: 189 total
Diagnosed 9/2013