I'm just going to give a short vague description because the details are complicated. A girl I had a crush on was really flirty with me (and everyone else, making it a problem to decipher her mind games) recently told me I was the only one she trusted and that I was like a brother to her (cringe). I attempted to watch a movie marathon alone with her a few days after she dropped the bomb, but it was a public dorm common room so there was another girl there playing the part of wheel number three. The other girl was kind of trashy and had hit on me before, so I used her as a snuggle buddy during the movie to try to get the girl I was interested in jealous (like a test to see if she was really into me). That night I didn't think it worked because the girl I was interested in "played it cool." The next morning though, she acted extremely flirty (she flirts with everyone which is why I devised the test in the first place) and totally un-friendzoney. Now I feel like a dick for using the other girl in my twisted mind games and I also feel like an idiot because I didn't act on the flirting right from the start. Unhappy ending time; I never made a move on her. Not sure if I genuinely value her friendship or I'm just too much of a wimp to act.

So my question for you sedditors is, has this type of approach ever worked for building a relationship? I have to say it seems pretty shady and can't be a good foundation.