I'm probably completely overreacting and this is embarrassing, but I literally hid behind a delivery van yesterday to avoid him. We spent a whole month going on daily coffee walks, talking for hours, holding hands—and then he suddenly cut all contact without a single word. Our town has three streets, so I run into him constantly and my chest just freezes up in pure panic. Did I mess up?

First things first: come out from behind the delivery van, you did not mess up. Abruptly vanishing after weeks of hand-holding and deep sidewalk talks isn’t a subtle hint that you did something wrong. It’s the adult equivalent of putting a cardboard box over your head and hoping nobody notices you exist. Ghosting someone online is weak; doing it offline in a town where you share the exact same bakery is outright Olympic-level cowardice. His sudden freeze has everything to do with his inability to use his words and zero to do with your worth. The agonizing part isn't even the rejection—it’s the lingering silence turning every corner into a jump scare. Next time you spot him near the corner store, don't duck. Plant your feet, give a brief, polite chin nod like you would to a mildly annoying distant acquaintance, and keep walking. You don't owe him a confrontation, but you definitely don't owe him your hiding spots either.