They ghosted you because you mean nothing to them. If they had strong feelings for you, they would not have gone missing. They would have struggled to spend hours without you, let alone days and weeks and months.
Even though you are tempted to send another text in order to receive closure or to reel them back into your world, do not chase after them. Do not ask them where they have gone. Do not curse them out. Do not demand answers. Do not talk to them as if everything is perfectly fine, either. Do not try to resurrect the friendship you once had.
Let them go. Erase their number. Delete the screenshots of the cute texts they sent in the past. Decide you deserve better. Promise yourself you are not going to stoop low enough to beg for their attention.
You do not need someone who does not need you. The moment they ghosted you, they told you everything you needed to know about them. They do not value you. They do not respect you. They do not care about you the same way you have always cared about them.
Instead of being devastated by this realization, let it motivate you to move on. Don’t be embarrassed about all of the time you wasted on them. Be thankful you finally know the truth and won’t be wasting any more time on them in the future.
One day, they might reappear in your world, they might send you a text with an excuse about being busy and gush about how much they miss you — but that does not mean you should give them a second chance. Do not let them unravel all of the progress you have made getting over them.
If you send a reply text, if you allow them back into your universe, then you risk falling back to square one. You risk falling into their trap again.
Even if you think you are in a good place, even if you think you are completely done with them, all of your anger and confusion and bitterness might vanish as soon as you start talking to them again. They might remind you why you fell for them in the first place. They might be charming. They might be flirtatious. They might drag you back to the beginning and convince you things will be different this time.
You do not want to put yourself through the same pain again, so do not answer them. Do not give them the comfort of knowing you still care. Do not feel guilty about ignoring them because they had no problem ignoring you.
When someone ghosts you, do not make excuses for them. Do not hope they will come crawling back. Be honest with yourself about what ghosting means. It means they do not feel the way you wish they felt. It means they are not good enough for you. It means you need to place them in your past — and keep them there.
By Holly Riordan for ThoughtCatalog