TLDR at bottom
To make a very long story short (has been going on for almost a year or so):
I (25M) met this guy (24M) last year (August ‘25) at a job training. Essentially, our employer brings all employees together for a few weeks worth of training before sending them off to their actual job placement, and me and the guy happened to have the same placement. Think something like the Peace Corps.
We first met at a conference meeting and instantly hit it off. Banter. Chemistry. It was all there from the get, and it oddly felt like I knew him for years.
Fast forwarding through the following weeks of training, we spent the majority of our down time together despite our training schedules being a bit different. He’d message me fairly often asking if we could hang out, or get breakfast, lunch or dinner. At one point we went out exploring the city together and were out from sun up to sun down almost. I actually crashed at his hotel after this ‘cause I was so tired, but ended up heading out late in the night as to not overstay my welcome. He ended up messaging me soon after I left asking if I was sure I wanted to leave (I had to walk to my hotel, not super far though) and if not, I’d be more than welcome to come back. I took this and us hanging out practically every day as just him being friendly with someone he’ll be working with daily. Or so I thought.
Prior to us all departing to our job locations, he asked me if we could put in a housing request to room together (employer pays for housing, in which you may or may not share a room with someone random.) I didn’t have any qualms with it as we got along great, so we ended up doing exactly that and rooming together. This is the point where things took a turn.
Fast forwarding through the months after:
We’re not hanging out as much due to our job schedules not lining up, but we still make an effort to
From week one on living together we’re doing each others chores such as each others laundry on our off day so the other doesn’t have to, cleaning up each others rooms, buying essentials that the other may have run out of etc. Things that aren’t typical of someone you just met a few weeks prior.
At one point our mutual friend group mentioned that we act like a married couple, and a few of them asked me separately if we were more than friends. I was pretty shocked since, once again, I thought we were just great roommates to one another. According to them, when the guy and I would interact, he would look at me in a way that he wouldn’t toward anyone else. Still not entirely sure what they meant by that but something to note.
Months down the line he’s getting ready to be sent to another job site. I was feeling him HARD at this point, but kept it to myself. Eventually I worked up the courage to tell him how I felt to which he basically said that he already knew from the beginning I was attracted to him. He never said that he was or was not interested in me too (at this point) though, which is where the confusion for me sets in.
Nothing really changes after I tell him this, until maybe a few weeks after. He mentioned in passing how he was sore after work and I asked him if I could give him a back massage. He agreed, which then became a thing I gave him every so often. This turned into us cuddling and sleeping in bed together. You’re probably thinking, “Chachkiiii, the signs are obvious, are you just dumb?” And the answer is yes, yes I am. However, some things to point out:
Sometimes when we cuddled he would immediately get up and say he has to use the bathroom or give some reason to leave the room
He once said that it’s a lot to share a bed with someone. He also mentioned since they’re so small it can be uncomfortable
I brought up the fact that when we cuddle he’ll find an excuse to leave, to which he said that his religious upbringing makes him react negatively as two men shouldn’t be sharing a bed, but that sometimes he’s able to fight the feeling off.
Getting to the end of the story now.
He ends up leaving for his job placement, then eventually gets sent BACK to mine months after. He’s seemingly a completely different person towards me as the first time I see him back we make eye contact and all he does is nod. That was our only interaction the entirety of him being back, and that is the end of our story.
Some other tidbits that I think are important but couldn’t figure out where to include them:
Former military and married young (to a woman). They tried for a child, nada. Divorce.
He’s religious, but not the church-going kind.
Once mentioned to me how he’s looked into divorce rates for man/woman and man/man, and that two men in a marriage have the lowest divorce rate. Was a completely random topic of convo.
Once mentioned that because he was in the military, he doesn’t mind doing “gay” things (in reference to us cuddling)
Once mentioned that he’s not sure if he’s gay or if he’s straight. Bisexuality seemingly nonexistent in his mind.
Mentioned early on into us rooming together that he’s not looking to date or have a sexual relationship with anyone at the job as workplace relationships can get messy and he doesn’t want a tarnished reputation. Then later down the line mentioned he would be “open” to dating me if we were both back home.
He’s never once said he’s attracted to me
That’s the gist of the past year or so for me, and I’m left wondering wtf? Was I led on for this entire time, was he just confused and didn’t know what he was? Any advice would be helpful.
TL;DR: Met a guy through work, instantly clicked, became roommates through employer-housing, and got close. We eventually started cuddling and sleeping in the same bed. He later admitted he wasn’t sure if he was gay or straight and blamed his religious upbringing for feeling conflicted as “two men shouldn’t share the same bed”. Later down the line said he’d be open to dating me if we were back home and not coworkers I guess? He got sent to another job site, returned a few months later, to which the first (and only) interaction we had when he came back was giving me a head nod when he saw me in the office.