There’s this girl who lives about 500 miles from my hometown. We randomly connected on Instagram, had a casual conversation, and became okay-ish friends—nothing too deep, just occasional replies to each other’s stories over a few months. Last year and again this year, she and her cousins planned a trip to my hometown. During her trip, she DMed me asking for recommendations for good places to visit. I gave her some suggestions without any intention of meeting up. But then she asked if I was free and mentioned that she’d like to meet me. Since I live away from my hometown for work, I told her it wasn’t possible but that maybe we could meet another time. She was cool about it and said no worries. That was the end of the conversation.

She probably had a good time in my city because, a few days or maybe even later, she added me to her close friends list on Instagram. But since then, whenever I reply to her stories, she doesn’t seem particularly interested. I try to keep the conversation going, but it feels very one-sided. She rarely replies to my stories, although she frequently likes them. Recently, when I replied to one of her stories, we exchanged a couple of texts, but she ended the conversation by liking my message, and that was it. Since then, she’s continued liking my stories but hasn’t made any effort to initiate a conversation.

Here’s the thing: I have a pretty big crush on her. We have a lot in common, she’s cute, and I just like her overall vibe. But I’m not sure how to handle this. It feels like I’ve already lost the “text game” and don’t know how to move forward. Meeting her in person isn’t really an option because we’re not close enough for me to randomly invite her to my city, nor do I have any excuse to visit hers. So, I’m stuck. Any advice on what I should do next or is it a lost cause?