Widdershins

There's this concept I've seen, called love languages. It's the idea that there are five different ways that you can make people feel loved: Acts of Service (doing things for them), Gift Giving (giving things to them), Quality Time (spending time with them), Words of Affirmation (saying nice things to them), and Physical Touch. Different people have different love languages that work for them, and it's pretty obvious that one of yours is Physical Touch.

To (attempt to) answer your question, Physical Touch does not need to be in any way romantic/whatever you want to call it. However, due to our dumb society, people tend to think of it solely as such and get creeped out when someone attempts to obtain snuggles from them. Your friends will probably take it the wrong way if you ask for a 'pet', unless they're entirely and utterly your buddy-pal enough to listen to your explanation, refrain from romanticising the 'petting', and put the quality of your emotional state above their desire not to look creepy to everyone and sundry (unless, of course, you have secret snuggles  ).

Recently, though, science has found that Physical Touch is really, really good for you (decreases stress, focusses and calms your mind, stabilises your mood at 'happy', boosts immunity, increases contentment and life satisfaction, etc.). As such, in America at least, they've started free touch therapy groups (otherwise known as 'hug parties') where people just get together and snuggle each other. I'm talking random strangers, just hugging each other - non-romantically - for three hours straight. Have a look round for this sort of stuff if you think that your friends will think you're creepy for asking for a 'pet'.

Well, I getcha @Lunar Echo. " And just so we're clear, I LIKE personal space and don't like someone rubbing their palms over me. "

   Hee, I can see how playing pattycake with your face without any warning may come across as a tad alarming! Though I would be thoroughly entertained should you and @Randimaxis ever meet up in person! It's like, how you do always hear of some pack of friends who are so familiar with each other that they punctuate their "playful ribbing" and teasing of each other by whacking each other so hard that they nearly dislocate their shoulders! I look at what some YouTube reviewers pull off: Markiplier and how foul-mouthed he gets with his best buds or how some reviewers have just so much trust in their friends & family as to stage a scene where they all gang up and "pretend" to beat the everlivin' lights outta him.

  But I just get sick of nearly every question I have getting answered with "it depends on the relationship set up." Like, yeah, I know that. That don't help me none here!

   But when I say petting, I mean it literally. I know It can have more... unsavory connotations, i've stumbled across some pretty disturbing humor before on the internets. But I mean it l-like, ah... just a scritch on the scalp or a gentle cuff behind the ears. If you can do it with a dog or your other kind of family pet, then it's a right proper way of showing affection, right? I mean, started up a thread actually about that once. Really, the only way I know of what you can get away with in showing affection of any sort is from the comfort the family dog would allow me.

   Beh... though for some reason I feel certain nothing I can come up with would be any less crude than what I feel certain some other guys have asked for on the first date...

  @Duality  As a side note, that is likely the best use I've seen so far of the RD Ponimoticon!

 " (decreases stress, focusses and calms your mind, stabilises your mood at 'happy', boosts immunity, increases contentment and life satisfaction, etc.)"   Huh... each one of those things happens to be things I have trouble with... Kinda sad how distant from each other western culture seems to be. That whole idea of people being overly warm & open, like immediately greeting you with an open bear-hug the moment they see you and encouraging you to join them for a family dinner seems more like a... Greece or Turkish thing. Mind you, I don't get out much to provide much in the way of examples there, but kind of always feels like every American is glaring at you like your carrying a dagger behind your back.

  " As such, in America at least, they've started free touch therapy groups (otherwise known as 'hug parties')"                   That's like... I dunnae even know!

  Gosh, it's been ages since I've even been in a class of... more than six other people! Gosh! Think that'd be total overload! Heh, I qualm even at the thought of just one buddy intentionally giving a hug to me! Huff! Face feels a little warm! Think I need me another lay-down!

  But... basically, by "petting" I mean what they do in Pokemon Amie.  ...which, they were going to allow you to do too in Fire Emblem Fates/Conquest to the characters you married... But America came along at said that rubbing your waifu that you married on the tummy or cheeks was too graphic or something, or even just looking them in the face & poking them, which was essentially what I understand a "boop" to be, to still be too far a jump to have diluted to, and they removed it entirely!

   Showing affection to a devoted spouse whom you've raised a child with= must be censored; Rubbing the lower abdomen of a muscle-bound, be-jock-strapped female Machoke= Fine for all ages!

They can TRY to censor my wife and I all they want to...

... OUR LOVE (and amusement) WILL NOT BE CONTAINED!!!!!