Let’s be honest, in 2026, dating has become extremely difficult. With the emergence of dating apps and the rising popularity of social media use, dating has proved to be more difficult than ever. Along with this, ghosting has become more popular, especially with the college-aged male population. I cannot count the number of people I know who have been ghosted by someone, including myself. For this article, I have compiled a short list of stories from friends of mine, who I will keep anonymous, and one from myself. I have been given permission to share these stories by the individuals involved.Â
So, what exactly is ghosting? Ghosting someone is the act of completely stopping responses to someone you have been going out with, for seemingly no reason. It is a severe lack of communication skills, immaturity, and the “complex” that the person you’ve been talking to is not deserving of a conversation about why you are no longer interested in pursuing a relationship.Â
Anonymous 1
I had matched with this seemingly amazing guy on the Hinge app. We had so much in common, and our conversations flowed so easily. To me, it was a no-brainer to schedule an in person date. The first date went perfectly, and so did the second and third. We ended up going on about six dates before he ghosted me. I remember him dropping me off back at my house and walking me to my door; he told me he would text me when he got home. Needless to say, I never heard from him again. At first, I thought maybe something had happened to him, until I saw him on campus several weeks later; which was when it was finalized in my mind that I had been ghosted. Honestly, it was much more hurtful than someone just telling me they weren’t interested.
Anonymous 2:
I met this guy through mutual friends, so I thought surely he would be a great person, he was friends with my friends and we had common interests. He and I went out for about a month and hooked up multiple times within that month. I had caught feelings for him and was ready to become his girlfriend, so I decided to send him the dreaded “what are we” text. I never heard back from him, I had been ghosted. Less than 24 hours after I sent this text, he hard launched another girl to the song I had introduced him to with the caption “my one and only forever.” For the longest time I thought I had done something wrong, now, I realize it wasn’t me, it was him, and he was playing me and this other girl the entire time.Â
Anonymous 3:
The one and only time I have ever been ghosted was my freshman year of college, and to this day, it is still one of the most humbling experiences of my life. Like a typical freshman, I met this guy in my dorm, he was on the same floor as me so we saw each other frequently. I can only describe what we had as a situation where I had deep feelings for him and he saw me as a convenient hook up who lived down the hall from him. One night, I told him I wanted a relationship, he told me he wanted the same. After that, he blocked me out of nowhere and avoided me like the plague for the rest of the year. Turns out, he did want a relationship, just not with me. So take this as your sign, never go out with the frat guy who lives down the hall from you.Â
Anonymous 4:
Meeting a man at church seems like a great place to meet someone, right? Wrong. I met a really sweet guy at my church and we hit it off quickly. We had the same major and were both involved in the same sport, let’s just say I thought he was my soul mate-of course now I know this was more of a delusional thought. I ended up becoming his girlfriend and was introduced to his entire family. After almost six months of dating, he ghosted me. I have never in my life been so upset over a guy, I was constantly wondering what I had done wrong. About a month after he ghosted me, I ran into him in public and asked him why he had ghosted me when I thought we had something real. His only response was “my bad bro.” Seriously though, his bad.
Anonymous 5:
I was talking to a guy in the Marine Corps. He was what I thought was perfect; tattoos, huge biceps, and a mustache, just my type. We went on several amazing dates and even made things official between us before he told me the news that he was going to be deployed for six months. We agreed to do a long-distance relationship, and I thought it was going to work out. Once he “got to” his deployment location I stopped hearing from him, I thought nothing of it- he was in another country and he was busy. You could imagine my shock when I saw him at a bagel place with another girl, a month into this “deployment.” He later on admitted to lying about being deployed.
These are just some stories of people I know who have been ghosted. It is always so much better to be honest about how you feel instead of simply ghosting someone. It is hurtful and immature in so many ways. I hope this article has made anyone who had been ghosted feel less alone. Ghosting is something that has become too normalized in our culture. With dating apps it is too easy to lead someone on, which ends up in ghosting or hurt feelings.