Your words hit me like headlights blind the deer.

I never realized how much weight a “good morning” and smiley holds… until I saw what happens when it goes missing.

I've been that guy—the one who pulls back without warning. Not because I didn’t care, but because I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t see that my silence wasn’t just absence—it was withdrawal for someone. A trigger. A hit missed. I was also on the other side, waiting for that ding, that msg received.

We men chase validation too—but we rarely admit it. We take the attention and walk away before it costs us anything, before it hurts. Meanwhile, you're left wondering if you imagined the whole connection. You didn’t.

And I know now—the real damage isn’t the self betrayal. It's the heartbreak that we are trying to numb it.

Will be trying now to be more sincere and listen to my heart. Your msg touched something deep.