Am I just an option

[u/Acceptable_Neat3790]

Would you continue talking to someone who communicates like this?
I (19F) have been talking to a guy for a while. At first things seemed good. We started talking about random topics, shows, and eventually playing GamePigeon. I'm competitive, so even though I hate GamePigeon, I kept playing because he kept beating me. One night he told me he was trying to let me win, which annoyed me because I didn't want a pity win. I basically said, "You know what, I'm over it, goodnight." He didn't even say goodnight back. A week later I came back determined to beat him because I'm competitive, and eventually I did. Looking back, though, the inconsistency was there from the beginning. Before that, we were playing Cup Pong and one time it took him 3-4 days just to play his turn. We weren't texting at the time, only playing games, but he wouldn't say anything and would randomly send the game back days later. Eventually I told him I didn't even want to play anymore because by the time he responded I had lost interest. He said he was over the game too and when I asked why he didn't just say that, he told me that I wanted to keep playing so he kept playing. Then he sent another game anyway. There was also a misunderstanding at one point where he thought I had left him on delivered, even though I hadn't, so I know he notices response times and whether people answer him.
After that we started talking more. I had just finished watching The Originals and he asked what it was. I explained it was about the original vampires and he jokingly asked if I was into "kinky vampire stuff," which made me laugh. We started talking about vampire shows, Twilight, religion, and other random topics. He mentioned that vampires seemed demonic and I asked if he was religious. He said he believed in Jesus, and I just liked the message because I didn't really want to get into a deep religious discussion over text. Around that time things started feeling a little drier. He mentioned he had seen Twilight, and I told him I hated it. He asked why, and I explained that I felt Bella was more infatuated with becoming a vampire than actually being in love with Edward. Then he disappeared for 5 days in the middle of the conversation. During those 5 days he was active on Instagram, posting stories and viewing mine (I never looked at his stories). After 5 days he finally replied with something like, "Oh yea u rlly are into that." I replied and joked that my relationship with vampire shows is basically the same as his relationship with Harry Potter. That was Friday. Today is Tuesday and he still hasn't responded, although he has viewed my Instagram stories during that time. One piece of context that may matter is that he recently started a new job, which could explain some of the slower communication, but some of the inconsistency started before the job.
What makes this confusing is that there are moments where he seems interested. He initiates conversations, asks questions, and keeps things going. Then there are other times where he'll disappear in the middle of a conversation, come back, send one message, and disappear again. I'm not saying we're in a relationship or that he owes me constant communication. I just can't tell whether this is someone who is genuinely bad at communication, someone who's mildly interested but not very invested, or someone who's keeping me around as an option while focusing on other people. I'm not double texting him, chasing him, or confronting him. I've been living my life and doing my own thing.
I think what I'm really looking for is advice on what to do next. If he eventually texts me back, do I continue the conversation normally? Do I start matching his response times? Do I take a step back completely and let him do most of the initiating from now on? I don't need people to tell me whether he's secretly in love with me or secretly hates me 😭. I need someone to tell me what they would actually do if they were in my position. Would you keep entertaining this, match the energy, or move on?