This is in my opinion the single best thread on the entire forum. Anyone who has been dumped or flaked on, no matter what stage in the relationship process, should read the whole thing. It's a thread that is very relevant to many of the posts currently in the main discussion area, and it rings true for a situation that i found myself in last week.
Here's my story- it's a textbook example.
One of the girls I've been dating is the best looking girl I've ever been with by a mile. We had 4 dates in 5 weeks, all of which went amazingly well. I got her into bed at my place on the first date, dispite LMR. She is fun to hang around as well as attractive, and although I find her a little immature and not especially intelligent, I was about to drop the other girl I was seeing and make her my gf.
The girl beat me to it, and suggested that I drop the other girl that she knew I was seeing. My response was wrong, and it turned her off. In hindsight, I should have either deflected her (indirect) request for exclusivity to delay the issue, or accepted and made her my gf on the spot. Instead, I told her I liked her, and that I was looking for a relationship at some point this year to give me time to focus on my work. I told her I had dropped the other girl already, although this was a lie- I was preserving my options. I said I might be interested in a relationship with her, but not right now, but I was prepared to drop the other girl for her.
In that one moment, all the aloofness that I had spent the past weeks building up by not replying to all her texts, seeing her once a week etc - it was all shattered. She saw that my interest level was very very high, and although she likes me, it caused her to revaluate whether she was as interested in me as I apparently was in her. She has flaked on me twice this week, and has been very hesitant in replying to messages - assuming she's replied at all. She's been through personal difficulties this week, but I feel this is a side issue: an interested girl will make time for a lover in almost any circumstances.
I really like this girl, even though I have another one on the go. I recognise the mistake I made by showing my hand too quickly, and the only course of action available to me is to go NC and hope she comes back to me. As the many examples in this thread make clear, this is a win/win situation for me. If she comes back, I win. If she doesn't, she never liked me as much as I thought she did, and I dodged a bullet before getting more emotionally invested.
Masterful advice on this thread guys- take advantage of it.