Stop and Stare..but make sure you don't get caught

Someone told me, that during class when she looks at someone, and the other person looks back, they end up smiling at each other. She said she couldn't help herself and that this always happens.

I believe that they do this because when they look at each other they start feeling a little squish (the new 'in word' for awkward. Therefore it happens that they smile at each other to make that awkward feeling go away.

Having learned about Psychology, reflexes and our culture can we somehow understand this behavior? Tell me what you think!

This brings somethings else to mind. There is this saying which states: "Don't feel bad if the person you look at catches you looking at him since it means that he is looking back".
Do you think that this is true or that we feel when someone is looking at us, or we see it through or peripheral vision and we therefore look at the person looking at us?