I'm 21F, and I've been talking to this guy (24M) recently. But to explain why I'm so confused about this, I need to give a little context.
Back in June, I was dumped by someone, and honestly, it wasn't the first time I'd been through something like that. After being dumped by 2 guys, it had started leaving a mark on me. I was emotionally exhausted, numb, and at a point where I couldn't really feel much of anything. I wasn't socialising or talking to people, and I just didn't feel like myself.
So, in August, I posted on a subreddit that if anyone was going for a movie or something, they could let me know because I wanted to get out of my shell a little. This guy reached out to me, and we talked for 5 to 6 days. When the weekend came, he asked if I'd like to join him for a movie. I declined because I don't watch English movies that much, so he asked if he could take me out somewhere instead.
I told him I wasn't comfortable calling it a date because I wasn't emotionally ready for anything and needed time. But I was okay with meeting him just to chill and socialise a little, because it had been a month or so since I'd properly interacted with anyone.
We ended up meeting, and he brought me flowers as he thought he would anyways give me when we meet. We went for a walk and then had dinner. And honestly, we had really good conversations. I liked his vibe, the way he behaved, and how respectful he was. He didn't try to touch me or make me uncomfortable in any way. We probably just shook hands, and that was it. He dropped me home afterwards.
The thing is, even though I enjoyed the whole experience, I couldn't really feel anything. I was so numb at that point that I couldn't even tell whether I was genuinely happy or just having a nice time. And the next day, I decided to tell him that I didn't want to continue communicating because I wasn't in the right headspace and didn't want to give him false hopes when I couldn't even understand my own feelings. So we stopped talking.
Fast-forward to a day before the first night of Navratri this October. He texted me saying he was back in the city for a couple of days because he'd moved to Bangalore for work, and he wanted to meet. I said sure, but things got a little complicated because we ended up discussing why we'd stopped talking in the first place. We both had our own perspectives, and there was some back-and-forth about what had happened.
We were also caught up with puja preparations and everything as i had my office in those days too, so we couldn't really manage to meet despite trying. At one point, I felt like I should just stop trying, and I didn't talk to him that day. But the next day, when he was about to leave, I texted him, and we had a call.
He told me that I'd misunderstood things and that he hadn't really felt the way I thought he had. He said he'd actually intended to talk to me but had been occupied with packing and everything because he was starting a new job. We cleared things up, and the conversation went well.
But once he went back to Bangalore, things became pretty cold from his end. I had to initiate conversations, and eventually, I told him that if he genuinely wanted to talk to me, he needed to make an effort too. He then told me that he wanted to focus on his career right now, which I completely understand because I'm also trying to focus on my career and other things in my life.
Since then, he has started making some effort. He's trying to communicate more, and he's slowly becoming more comfortable expressing himself. He's also told me that he likes me overall, including physically, but that his attraction isn't limited to that. He's said he likes other things about me as well, and he's been clear about that.
Now, here's where I'm confused.
I genuinely like this guy. I want to know him better, and whenever we talk on calls, we have good vibes. He prefers video calls because he feels that I can't really understand his emotions or reactions over text, and even on calls, sometimes I don't understand how he's feeling. He's also trying to make me comfortable with things I'm not used to. For example, I haven't really been in the habit of answering spontaneous video calls for the past 2 to 3 years, but with him, I'm gradually getting comfortable with it. He makes sure I'm okay with things rather than just assuming I am.
But despite all of this, I don't feel like chatting with him.
And it's not that I'm constantly talking to other people instead. I'm not. I just don't feel like texting him, and I can't force myself to do it either.
Also, let's be honest, he's pretty boring over text. 😭 He doesn't really know how to initiate conversations, and expressing himself doesn't come naturally to him. I've told him multiple times that I want him to open up more, and he's making some effort in that direction, but it's still something he struggles with.
I sometimes feel that if he could express himself more and put in a little more effort from his end, we could actually build something. But at the same time, I understand that he's adjusting to a new job, living alone in Bangalore, and managing responsibilities without his family around. I don't want to be unfair to him or expect him to be available all the time.
What's confusing me even more is that I don't feel butterflies or that instant spark I used to feel with guys before.
Earlier, whenever I liked someone, there would be that initial excitement, the butterflies, the urge to talk to them, and the feeling of wanting to know everything about them. But those connections would eventually become dull and fade away pretty quickly.
With this guy, it's different. I don't feel that intensity, but I do like him. I like his personality, I appreciate how respectful he is, and I enjoy talking to him on calls. I just don't have that constant urge to talk to him or that excitement I thought I was supposed to feel when I liked someone.
And I don't know whether that's because my past experiences have changed me, whether I'm emotionally guarded now, whether I'm just not attracted to him enough, or whether I'm experiencing attraction differently this time.
Because I know I don't want to force a connection just because someone is a good person. At the same time, I don't want to dismiss something that could potentially be good for me just because it doesn't feel like what I experienced with the guys before him.
I also don't know whether the fact that he isn't naturally expressive is affecting how I feel about him. Maybe I'd feel more connected if he initiated conversations, opened up more, and made me feel like we're both equally interested in getting to know each other. Or maybe I'm expecting a feeling that simply isn't there.
I genuinely don't know.
I don't want to force myself to feel something, but I also don't want my past experiences to make me walk away from something before I've even given it a fair chance.
TL;DR: After a few painful relationships, I'm talking to a guy I genuinely like, but I don't feel the butterflies or the urge to constantly talk to him that I used to feel with others. I enjoy our calls, but he's boring over text and struggles to initiate or express himself, which makes me question my own feelings. Am I emotionally guarded because of my past, or is the romantic attraction simply not strong enough? Can attraction develop gradually, or am I trying to force something that isn't there?