Someone’s short reply might be about their day, not about you. Check before you spiral.

Nearly everything people do is caused by something you were not in. A flat reply usually means a bad shift, a row at home, a headache, or nothing at all, and the part of you that reads it as a verdict on your friendship is assuming you are the main character of their afternoon. You usually are not, and that is good news.

When a short message lands badly, give it a day or ask directly. Asking looks like checking whether they are all right, not like demanding reassurance. One question beats forty minutes of rereading three words.