My best friend is a man. We are obviously very close. I have in the past had feelings for him and told him this to which he replied he didn’t feel the same. We stayed friends and it was fine as it helped me to put it to bed etc. If anything we are closer as I knew where I stood and could appreciate the friendship for what it was. My feelings went away.
Recently he said he used to think he liked me but realised it was because other people kept talking to him about it. Our friends often comment on how close we are etc. He asked me if I would have committed to things with him if he’d said he felt the same and I said no. We were a bit drunk and I didn’t ask him about when he had these feelings and we haven’t talked about it since - not a big deal.
The issue is that he’s now started dating. He was in a relationship when we met and then that ended and he was single for a long time. To my surprise it’s not nice - I find it really hard knowing he’s going on dates and he likes people etc.
I feel I should take a step back. Is it worth explaining why to him or just gradually pulling away? He will definitely notice.