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Bad date tonight with a guy who I care about who clearly just wants sex. Help me sort my thoughts and feelings!

14 replies

Ilovemycatsomuch · 10/11/2021 00:11

I have been in contact with a man who I like for 4 months. He is not a stranger, he's someone from my very distant past. We were teenage boyfriend and girlfriend and hadn't seen each other in 20 years!! I initiated the contact with him. I had been through a traumatic time with men and my memory drifted back to the lovely innocent relationship we had as teenagers.

So I got in touch with him. I made it clear that I wasn't looking to rekindle a romance, I just wanted to ask if he valued the memories as much as I did. He is single and , even though it wasn't my intention,our messages got very flirty. He made it clear he was up for sex. I enjoyed the flirting and invited him over to my flat and we had sex. It was quite nice.

After that we continued messaging. I told him that even though I had enjoyed spending the night with him, I was not interested in a casual sex/friends with benefits type of arrangement. But that I would like to be his friend and if it progressed to a relationship that would be nice... but if not I'm happy to be friends. He completely agreed that he felt the same.

That's when things got complicated....

We stayed in touch, but didn't meet up again (until tonight). He works very long hours and also has children from a previous relationship who he spends his only free day with (which I completely agree that he should). So he doesn't have much free time at all.

Our messages and phone calls vary from being friendly chats to very flirty, and I admit I have sent him sexual pictures of myself. He often contacts me out of the blue wanting to meet up.... and at these times he is very forward in stating he wants sex.

I have told him that I'm not going to meet him at short notice like that. I've also told him I would like to get to know him better before persuing a sexual relationship.

So finally tonight we were due to go out on an actual date...just to a pub for a drink, chat and to play card games! When we arranged this, last week, amongst our flirtatious chat I said that I would be up for going to his place after the pub. And I meant it I would be up for having sex with him. And although it wasn't explicitly stated, it was clear from our messages that we were both open to that and looking forward to it.

So today arrived and I have been feeling unwell (due to long term illness). I don't feel like having sex tonight. He messaged me about meeting up, to finalise arrangements...but suggested we skip the pub and I just go to his flat instead! I told him I would still like to meet up, but I don't feel like having sex tonight. I thought it was very important to make my boundaries for the evening clear.

I really don't think I did anything wrong. Last week when we were arranging it I thought I would be happy for sex, today I feel differently and I don't want sex....so I told him this. I was really nervous about telling him, and in some ways I thought it easier to go along with what we previously agreed....like I owe it to him now that I've insinuated it and he will be really looking forward to it and I don't want to hurt his feelings or let him down!!

But I just knew for my own safety and security , and to avoid unclear boundaries, I had to tell him that I don't want sex tonight. So he had a bit of a strop and said he had never even thought about sex ...and basically he couldn't believe that I was even suggesting that he thought it was on the cards!! And he was so offended by me saying that!!

After that he messed me around all night. I did eventually meet up with him and he behaved like a saint. Until I got home and he requested sexy photos from me!

OP posts:
DaisyDreaming · 10/11/2021 00:18

Well done for expressing yourself and having boundaries. You certainly don’t owe him going through with having sex when you don’t feel like it.
I hope someone will be along soon who are good at helping emotional situations like this but I wanted to add some support

Ilovemycatsomuch · 10/11/2021 00:22

@DaisyDreaming thank you for replying to me. It really means a lot. I don't have many people around irl that I can bounce this off! I'm 90% certain that I haven't done anything wrong, but there is always that doubt. I also think that watching the channel 4 program last night, really brought it home to me, the importance of protecting oneself.

OP posts:
Enough4me · 10/11/2021 00:36

OP, he's after booty calls and not putting in effort to make this a relationship, why are you still talking to him and wanting your time?

DaisyDreaming · 10/11/2021 00:40

You 100% did the right thing

Ilovemycatsomuch · 10/11/2021 01:06

@Enough4me I guess I was starting to think we could have this really beautiful relationship! And I wanted to believe that. I suppose due to our shared history, I have massively given him the benefit of the doubt.

His behaviour tonight (which I haven't detailed in my post...would take to long), has made it clear that he is a bit of a manchild and he is very pissed off with me for saying I don't want sex tonight. I've ignored so many red flags because of my historic relationship with him. Tonight was a huge gigantic red flag. I feel a bit sad but I won't talk to him again. I really don't want to ever be sent in a guilt trip in order to agree to sex 😢

OP posts:
Ilovemycatsomuch · 10/11/2021 01:06

@DaisyDreaming thank you so much

OP posts:
CheeseMmmm · 10/11/2021 01:47

You did the right thing. And well done for that in theory it's easy but in practice not at all.

I think you need to stop contacting tbh. Sorry. Again easier said than done.

His strop though, says it all.

TheBareNecessitiesOfLife · 10/11/2021 02:33

You know you're right. It just feels like such a disappointment that you'd rather someone tell you that you've been unreasonable so you can go back to feeling hopeful about him.

If he was actually interested in a relationship with you he wouldn't mind a jot having a date where you've let him know in advance that you're not feeling anything afterwards. If he's being off with you about it he's either a) only interested in sex with you, or b) not a very nice man when it comes to expectations around sex (and it can be both).

It's left you feeling rubbish - listen to that feeling and walk away or you'll be feeling it for a very long time. At least you know your spidey senses for these things are alive and well FlowersCakeWine

PrimeraVez · 10/11/2021 02:46

Well done for sticking to your boundaries. He doesn’t sound like a great guy if he got in a strop because you wouldn’t sleep with him.

I will say though that in my opinion, you have been sending mixed messages - you say you told him you weren’t interested in a FwB situation, but then you send sexual photos and say you said you would go back to his place and ‘it meant I would be up for having sex’

Of course you are absolutely entitled to change your mind at any time but he is probably feeling quite baffled.

1forAll74 · 10/11/2021 02:57

I wouldn't be sending sexy photo's to him at all, with a bit of a messy set up of a relationship you have.

houseonthehill · 10/11/2021 05:10

The only decent response to you saying that you weren't going to be up for sex because you weren't feeling very well would be 'that's fine - let's just have a nice evening '... or possibly 'sorry you're not feeling well. Let's go out another time.' No strops.

On the wider story, you do seem very confused about what you are trying to create with him. I also think he might be a bit baffled - not about this evening, where you were clear, and he was wrong to react like that - but about the exact combination of friendship/romance/sexiness/innocence you want to finesse. I felt a lot of the contradictions in your feelings have something to do with your writing that you want to recapture the 'lovely teenage innocence' feeling, which perhaps isn't possible with the you and him of now. Because you're adults.

Rainbowqueeen · 10/11/2021 05:29

You seem to want different things.

If you stay in touch with him you will continue to feel confused. I’d draw a line under it, accept it wasn’t want you wanted and move on with your life

Ilovemycatsomuch · 10/11/2021 12:22

Thank you for all of this helpful. I can definitely see that I have given him mixed messages....I didn't intend to, and will be more careful in the future. I think that is why I felt unsure about saying I didn't want sex.... I do feel I have messed him around a bit. But I'm actually really glad Now that I told him. I am not going to talk to him or see him again.

OP posts:
BringMeTea · 10/11/2021 12:32

Mixed messages irrelevant. Woman decides she doesn't want to have sex. Full stop. He can react however he chooses. He has done and has shown he is a dick. Cut him loose.

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