Does he like me, or just like the attention?

He's warm, he's responsive, he clearly enjoys you. And yet something feels off, like you're more of an audience than a person he's actually pursuing. If you can't tell whether he likes you or just likes the attention you give him, here's how to read it.

Interest moves toward you, attention-seeking pulls you toward him

Someone who likes you invests: he asks about your life, makes plans, closes the distance over time. Someone who just likes the attention keeps you oriented around him, soaking up your effort and reflecting back just enough warmth to keep it coming. The direction of the effort is the tell.

The reliable test: stop feeding it

Attention needs a steady supply. Try easing off. Reply a little slower, stop being the one who props up every conversation and hypes every post. Real interest tends to step up when you step back, because he doesn't want to lose you. An ego that was only being fed tends to go find another source.

Watch what he does when you're not available

Does he wait, plan around you, make time? Or does the warmth vanish the second you're not instantly there for it? Someone who likes you can handle your busy weeks. Someone who liked the attention treats your unavailability like a problem, or simply moves on to the next source of it.

Your move

You are not an ego refill. If you keep feeling like a supply rather than a person, that feeling is data. Write down what he actually does for you versus what he lets you do for him, week by week, because on paper the imbalance gets very hard to romanticize. You want someone who likes you, not someone who likes how you make him feel about himself.