It’s not that this doesn’t happen. That’s a very common and normal thing. It’s also true that some girls like the attention and string people on. Heck, some guys do it. I’m not proud of it but as a dude I’ve arguably done it based on low self-esteem and a degree of shock whenever someone actually expresses interest in me.

The issue is when it’s reframed as this toxic trap the sirenous women lures men into to deliberately emasculated them. Or when women are framed as obliged to eventually give in to your advances if you’re a good enough “friend”.

It just so happens that upward of 60% of people who complain about the friend-zone have put themselves there through their own lameness and failings and it sounds like most of the people complaining about it in this thread fall into that lame, lame 60%.