u/FewImpression3195

I met this girl a few weeks ago at the local run club. We ended up going on a beach walk and then workout class where we got smoothies after. I asked her on a date via text and she said “she wanted to be completely honest that she was taking a step back from the dating scene due to a recent heartbreak and would love to hang out as just friends”. In my mind I took that as a friend zone right away and was okay with this outcome. But she had been very engaging with me for 2 weeks (hung out 6-7 times through workout classes, coffee, carpool to run club, etc). She was engaging via snap, Instagram, and text almost daily. Even blew off her friends (as she claimed) to get drinks with me for 2+ hours after one workout class. I was thinking maybe this can be a slow burn. Then the vibe suddenly shifted especially digitally. She did mention she has a nursing school entrance exam coming up at the end of the month and May was going to be a brutal month for her. She has not reached out at all online and did not respond to a text message and Instagram DM. However, I saw her at the run club after the sudden shift and vibes seemed very normal. She did mention how she was very stressed but was very engaging in conversation and asking how I was going, etc. after that, she commented something funny on my Strava post. However, this was a week ago and no communication since. I’m just very confused on what’s going on since it was such a sudden shift with the friends boundary already established on her end (at least she said so).

There was no incident that happened or something I did so is she losing interest in me as a person? Talking to another guy? Genuinely acting cold because of being overwhelmed? I do care about her even as a friend because she’s a good person and would feel awful if it ends like this.

I met this girl a few weeks ago at the local run club. We ended up going on a beach walk and then workout class where we got smoothies after. I asked her on a date via text and she said “she wanted to be completely honest that she was taking a step back from the dating scene due to a recent heartbreak and would love to hang out as just friends”. In my mind I took that as a friend zone right away and was okay with this outcome. But she had been very engaging with me for 2 weeks (hung out 6-7 times through workout classes, coffee, carpool to run club, etc). She was engaging via snap, Instagram, and text almost daily. Even blew off her friends (as she claimed) to get drinks with me for 2+ hours after one workout class. I was thinking maybe this can be a slow burn. Then the vibe suddenly shifted especially digitally. She did mention she has a nursing school entrance exam coming up at the end of the month and May was going to be a brutal month for her. She has not reached out at all online and did not respond to a text message and Instagram DM. However, I saw her at the run club after the sudden shift and vibes seemed very normal. She did mention how she was very stressed but was very engaging in conversation and asking how I was going, etc. after that, she commented something funny on my Strava post. However, this was a week ago and no communication since. I’m just very confused on what’s going on since it was such a sudden shift with the friends boundary already established on her end (at least she said so).

There was no incident that happened or something I did so is she losing interest in me as a person? Talking to another guy? Genuinely acting cold because of being overwhelmed? I do care about her even as a friend because she’s a good person and would feel awful if it ends like this.

Apologies in advance as this is summarized through ChatGPT:

I (24M) met a girl recently and we built a really strong connection over about 2 weeks. We hung out ~7–8 times, all 1-on-1 (Pilates, Barry’s, run club, coffee), and she was very engaged—initiating plans, carpooling, texting a lot, sending reels, commenting on my posts, etc. The vibe was easy and fun, lots of laughing, no awkwardness. About a week in, I asked her out more directly and she told me she had recently gotten her heart broken and is “taking a step back from dating,” but said she’d still like to hang out as friends. Despite that, she continued to invest a lot of time and effort, which made things feel a bit ambiguous. Fast forward to now—after a really good stretch, the last time I saw her (Pilates) she seemed stressed, low energy, not like herself (almost late, didn’t do her usual routine stuff, mentioned needing to study for a nursing entrance exam in ~3 weeks, declined dinner to study, canceled another workout for the same reason). Since then (3 days ago), she hasn’t reached out at all and communication has dropped off. I’m trying to figure out if this is: * just stress / life stuff causing her to pull back temporarily * or if her interest is fading now that the initial momentum is gone I didn’t do anything negative that would explain a sudden shift, which is why I’m confused. For now I’m planning to give her space and just see her naturally at run club / Pilates without forcing anything. I’m mentally moving on from her as a potential option but will still maintain a friendly rapport and positive vibes with her when I see her around.

Question: Does this sound like a normal dip due to stress, or the beginning of her losing interest as a friend/potential partner?

Note: she hasn’t initiated conversation since last Tuesday which is when she carpooled me to run club. At Pilates, she definitely seemed stressed/not herself and wasn’t dismissive of me but rather a bit more withdrawn in general.

Apologies that this is summarized through ChatGPT but there’s a lot going on here:

I (24M) met a girl recently and we’ve been spending a lot of time together over the past ~2 weeks. We’ve hung out about 6–7 times already, all 1-on-1, and most of the hangs are pretty long (a few hours at a time).

Some context:

She told me about a week ago that she’s “taking a step back from dating to focus on herself” after a recent situation.

Despite that, she’s been consistently engaging with me and initiating plans.

She’s invited me to things, offered to pick me up and carpool, and we’ve spent time both in public (workouts, coffee, run club) and privately (she came over to my apartment to try food I made).

Conversation is very easy—lots of laughing, no awkward silence, and we seem to genuinely enjoy each other’s company.

She texts/snaps me regularly and sends me things throughout the day.

There have been small signs of physical comfort (like sitting close, subtle contact), but nothing clearly romantic or intentional yet.

She sometimes uses terms like “bro/dude,” which makes me question things.

From my perspective:

I’m definitely attracted to her and would want this to become something more than friendship.

I’m also pretty inexperienced with dating/physical escalation, so I’ve been taking things slow and not trying to force anything.

I don’t want to cross her boundaries since she said she’s not looking to date right now.

My confusion:

Her actions feel more than just “friendly” (given the amount of time and effort), but the vibe is still very comfortable/platonic.

I can’t tell if she’s starting to see me in a romantic way, or if I’m just becoming a really good friend.

Question:

Does this sound like something that could naturally turn into dating over time, or am I likely drifting into the friend zone if things stay like this?