"I feel like I have been freed from a 6 month delusion, but now I doubt my ability to accurately judge anyone’s character and I feel like a complete idiot with zero social intelligence."
Don't worry about it, mate. We've all been there, so don't worry about doubting your ability to judge women. I will tell you this: some women do communicate in a flirtatious way and then get suprised when men show interested. This gets you off the hook a bit cuase maybe that's just the way she does it. Some women do flirt out of boredom.
Secondly, men are much more likely to mistake friendliness or courtesy for sexual interest. In addition, we tend to like what we've been exposed to a whole lot, so you can fall for women you've known for a long time without there being much chemistry. So, anytime you feel like you're falling for someone you've known as a friend, don't. Anytime you think a woman is interested in you, take that down maybe two notches for "windage" to get a more accurate estimate. Like how if my gf says she'll be here in an hour, I mentally go, "right, she'll be here in two hours".
Thirdly, the friend zone is real. :/
Fourth, more practice'll help you. Some more knowledge will, too, whether from PUA community, studying women or just negotiating. Always leave some sort of fallback position for the other person to go for in case they don't like your offer while still saving face for both of you. And said a bit more casually helps.
"But at least I had the courage to consciously go after something I wanted, instead of taking the easy (albeit dignified) less conscious route of inaction."
Damn straight! Good for you! Keep at it! Good luck!
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