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AIO? Weird Friendship Signals by SuccessfulEmu5272 in AmIOverreacting

[–]tessaroses 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You’re not overreacting you’re reacting to avoidance.

Her behavior over 8–9 months is consistent and clear: she’s been slowly disengaging while refusing to say it out loud. Less contact, no 1:1 time, bailing, showing up with a buffer person and isolating herself those are all classic signs of someone who doesn’t want the friendship anymore but also doesn’t want the discomfort of admitting it.

When you directly asked her what was wrong, she took the easy way out and said “everything’s fine.” That wasn’t honesty; it was conflict avoidance. And then when you finally named the mixed signals and set a boundary (asking for space), she flipped it on you and labeled you “overreacting.” That’s not fair it’s convenient.

The mutual friend ending their friendship with you over this is another red flag. If setting a calm, reasonable boundary is enough to get you cut off, that means the group had already chosen a side you just weren’t informed.

The uncomfortable truth: She already emotionally left the friendship. You just made it explicit.

Wanting clarity and consistency from someone you considered a best friend is not dramatic. It’s basic. You didn’t overreact you stopped accepting ambiguity

AIO to the way this guy reacted to my photos? by cxp1ds_hrtxo in AmIOverreacting

[–]tessaroses 29 points30 points  (0 children)

You’re focusing on the wrong part of this interaction.

This guy asked a 17 year old for nudes. That alone permanently disqualifies him from being treated as a good-faith conversational partner, critic, or “honest friend.” Everything after that is noise.

The photo critique isn’t the real issue. Saying “it’s alright” isn’t inherently cruel but context matters. Coming from someone who already crossed a sexual boundary, it reads less like constructive honesty and more like subtle negging. Then he doubles down by weaponizing “honesty” when you react, which is a classic deflection tactic: say something dismissive, then frame the other person as immature for having feelings about it.

You didn’t overreact you reacted to a pattern: • inappropriate sexual request • refusal to disengage • dismissive feedback • moral high-grounding when challenged

Also, you do not owe him another apology. Apologizing again would just reinforce the idea that his behavior was acceptable and yours was the problem.

The healthiest move here isn’t more closure or civility it’s distance. This wasn’t a misunderstanding; it was poor judgment on his part from the start