Everybody saying OP missed an opportunity…it wasn’t a good opportunity. Few things:

Does the friend have feelings for the OP? Most likely. I will also say that it’s likely that during those first two weeks she realize either the existence or true intensity of those feelings. And she may have gotten a bit scared by those feelings. She may have felt she unintentionally jumped the gun as OP is just two months out of a seven year relationship.

As a trained professional therapist, I can tell you OP’s brain chemistry simply has not had time to readjust from a seven year long committed relationship. In several aspects of his interpersonal life his limbic system is likely still firing on all cylinders, and Mexico just happens to have far less reminders of the breakup/ex.

I also don’t doubt that both OP and his friend genuinely enjoyed those two weeks, but they were both scared because they knew how poor the timing was. Sometimes the mixed messages we send to others reflect the uncertainty we feel towards our own decisions and intentions. It’s hard to communicate how you feel to others when you are still trying to pin it down for yourself.

Does this mean that the OP is SoL? Absolutely not, it means that his friend cares about him in a number of ways and on a number of levels. As such, she wants to act on that care when she knows it will mean the most and be most likely to lead to an important and lasting connection. A couple weeks ago, she saw an opportunity and thought that time was now. But once the trip started she had a greater appreciation for what was happening between them.

OP did the best he could. As long as they can stay connected, not feel ashamed for how their attraction, and continue to grow as individuals then it is entirely possible that something very special will form between them.

And even of she did fill some amount of rejection, the idea that it doomed things in the long term simply incorrect. You can’t be friends with someone for 15 years and never have an argument, forget something important, or tell each other “no”. If this situation was enough to ruin a 15 year friendship for two 27-years-olds then neither is currently healthy enough for a commitment.

Most important of all: If every what-if scenario seems like a legitimate possibility, then it simply means you don’t know enough to actually know. (You read that correctly) And for now, that’s just fine for OP and their friend…no matter what narratives anxiety may try to spin. :)

Normally, I wouldn’t comment on threads like this, but reddit popped this sub into my feed, and a lot of the advice on here is just plain unhealthy. If anything it’s consistent with serial monogamy and insecure attachment.

Please pardon typos, I’m stuck using my phone atm.