The first person to like my gym picture on Instagram was the woman I’d never quite gotten over. A small notification, technically. I managed to give it a fairly substantial workload.
I’m 21 now. I’d liked her since we were younger, and back in high school we were good friends. Eventually, I told her how I felt. She said she had a boyfriend, and that was my answer. Afterward, we gradually stopped talking, until she barely acknowledged me.
Six years later, during my junior year of university, she appeared in my story likes. Then she kept appearing. Almost everything I posted seemed to get a like from her. I knew that wasn’t a declaration of anything, but it was enough to make me reach out.
We started talking again, and there was much more to talk about than I’d expected. We’d both changed. We compared hobbies, habits, and interests, and discovered that we both love books and nature. Neither of us is particularly drawn to clubbing or partying. It turns out we have compatible preferences about where we’d rather not spend an evening.
The messages are harder to interpret. She’s more comfortable with phone calls than texting, and sometimes she takes a while to reply. I know that about her. My brain nevertheless occasionally treats the delay as an important development requiring immediate review.
In person, I don’t have that problem. Conversation flows. She brings up interesting subjects, always seems to have something to say, and holds my attention in a way very few people do. I genuinely enjoy listening to her. That part is easy.
What I can’t figure out is whether she’s enjoying a renewed friendship or feeling something more. I still like her a lot, and I never fully moved on. That makes me cautious about trusting my own interpretation. I’d prefer not to promote a series of Instagram likes into evidence they never agreed to be.
I also remember telling her how I felt the first time. We’re different people now, but the prospect of hearing another no hasn’t become especially appealing with age.
So I’m caught between letting this develop slowly and eventually being direct. How do I give a possible connection a chance without mistaking her friendliness for interest—and how long can I keep wondering before I need to ask?
