I think a lot of guys ghost because they think it leaves their options open and perhaps might even get a late-night booty call out of it.

I was in your situation before but it was not through text. I was friends with a guy for well over a year when he said he had feelings for me. I said I liked him a lot but not romantically. He still kept trying and then when it finally hit him that there was no point he dropped me as a friend.

A lot of people said that I was mean and I "friend-zoned" him but he was my friend for a while before he showed any interest in being more.

I think it is human nature that some people want what they can not have. I also think some "men" are programmed to enjoy the supposed challenge of the chase.