My friend (M28) and I (F30) went on a few casual dates last month and had something really cute going for about two weeks where we texted almost everyday, hung out for several hours, we even hugged and held hands. I was sure we had something going.
By about the three-week mark he texted less and less, and there were consecutive times I asked to hang out and he said he couldn’t but gave no alternatives. The last text was from me saying I miss chatting with him; he didn’t even read it.
By the four-week mark I figured he wasn’t interested in me the same way. Communication completely stopped; he just left me hanging. He stopped caring.
The thing is we’re also workmates. When things were going well, it was usually me who approached first and initiated conversation during the breaks. I’ve stopped doing that because I no longer see the point, but I still talk to him in a nice, polite way about work.
I thought we were okay, but now he’s intentionally avoiding me in a way that feels like he wants me to NOTICE he’s avoiding me. Like turning the other direction when he sees me in the hallway, or walking to the farther bus stop instead of the one right outside work where I wait.
What puzzles me is if he doesn’t care, why is he exerting effort everyday to act in a way he never used to? It’s making things awkward, upsetting, and difficult for me to move on. With zero communication, I don’t know how we can settle things on good terms.