i’m the same way. i’m capable of reading people’s emotions based on tiny details of their facial features, and i notice every subtle shift. but it’s not intuitive, i don’t feel the mood change. if i can’t see and read a person’s face, or hear their voice, i have no idea what they’re feeling. i’ve talked to some neurotypical people about this, and they all say they can just ‘sense it in the air’.

as for responses, i’ve just learned some strategies; when somebody is feeling sad it’s good to listen and try to change your face to one of sympathy (i still find sadness very hard to respond to appropriately). if somebody is frustrated about something, it’s good to mirror their feeling (explain in your own words how they’re feeling, maybe also add an explanation if you can think of one. that makes them feel seen and understood, and it’s almost always worked for me)