What am I doing wrong?

Some details about me: I'm a nearly 32-year-old guy living in Australia alone, and I'm an only child with plenty of cousins who are like my own siblings. Looks-wise, I'm above average; on a good day, I'd rate myself a solid 7, and with proper dressing, I'd be an 8, according to my sister. Physically, I'm in good shape - I spend at least an hour at the gym daily, and I'm a very active person. I would consider myself a center-right person when it comes to political views. I could be boring at times, because party And most importantly I'm mama's boy.

I dated a girl at my previous job in Bangalore for over six years. She cheated on me with another co-worker for six months. Most of our mutual friends were aware of the affair, but nobody said a word. I found out a few weeks before our engagement and called off the wedding. This happened in late 2018, and I moved to Australia in late 2019.

In 2022, my mom and aunt pushed for an arranged marriage. I chatted with a handful of girls and spoke to three of them, but nothing worked out. When I visited India in July 2022 for a wedding, N's mother approached my mom and me. I spoke with her for a few minutes and exchanged numbers. Things went well for six months, and we decided to move forward with the engagement. That's when N said she didn't want to leave India and her parents alone, which is fair from her point of view. She also said I'm a nice and kind person who deserves much better (she was also cheated on twice). It was a heartbreaking experience, but I understood her perspective, and even though it was tough, I tried to move on.

My dating experiences were different. Most Australian women would call me a nice person in general, and some of them are still my friends. However, most Indian women would call me a misogynist for no reason. One woman even called me a misogynist because I didn't open the door for her when I was carrying her handbag and coffee while walking behind her which led to a pity fight on the first date, I just said goodbye and walked away. I'm the kind of person who considers both sides before making a decision, and this was kind of hurtful. Maybe I could have handled it differently, and I'm not justifying my actions. It was not cool on her part.

Then I met a nice girl on the Arranged Marriage subreddit (although I would highly recommend people not to visit that subreddit, as it's toxic). We chatted almost every day for about four months, and things were going well. We could talk without judgment, and had good compatibility, chemistry, and inside jokes. And we both are from some city and speak the same language, the only issue is that she is 26, and I'm almost 32. I was waiting to ask her out because she was stressed with exams and job hunting, and I didn't want to stress her out. Then she randomly said we should stop talking, and I was heartbroken again, but I understand and am trying to move on. Again, she said I'm a nice guy.

When I ask my sister (24), she always says I'm someone any girl would be lucky to have. From her point of view, unlike many men in the family, I'm very understanding and supportive. I don't take her words seriously because she is still young and has never had a relationship in her life. But my neighbor is a life coach, happily married with 2 beautiful children and she's around 38. She also says the same.

I always had high hopes for life. Even when things were rough, I always had hope. But I'm starting to lose hope when it comes to relationships. My question is, why would a girl say you're a nice guy and then end up dumping him and choosing someone who doesn't respect them, and later come back and say all men are the same?

Sorry for the long post, I'm really bad at explaining things in words. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments.

Posted Nov 6, 2023, 9:37 AM UTC

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