Dating

Is a man being a late bloomer when it comes to dating a red flag?

I grew up very sheltered. Wasn’t allowed to date. I moved out on my own 6 years ago and have struggled to progress in the dating world. A lot of first dates and some second dates, but nothing beyond that until this year.

I’m 28 going on 29 now and I had my first kiss back in February with a woman I met on Hinge. She said that I confused her and she wondered why I was a bad kisser. I confessed that she was my first and she was disgusted. Her having that knowledge plagued the rest of our dates. She kept feeling like she had to lead because she was the more experienced one and she kept demanding more out of me than I was comfortable with. Ultimately, I broke it off after 5 weeks. For a while, I feared that I’d never get another chance.

Then 4 months later, I end up dating someone from Bumble. It was a complete opposite experience for the most part. This woman let me lead and said that she thought I was a great kisser, even in the last text she sent me. But ultimately, she ghosted me after 3 weeks without an explanation.

It’s been a little over 2 months since I’ve been out on a date. I’m back on the apps, but I’m not getting any matches within 25 miles or less, and nothing on most apps. The 2 matches I currently have are on Bumble, but they are 50-100 miles away and the convos are dry. I’m thinking about deleting the apps all together again for a while or for good.

Is it even worth trying since I got started so late? I have a cousin that’s 30 and his fiancée is his first girlfriend. She told him that she only continued dating him because he’s had proof of extended dating experiences. They went to the same college and had some mutual friends. They started dating when he was 28. Prior to her, my cousin had dated a couple of women for 3 months at most with no official label. I don’t have that kind of proof. I can’t get anything to last longer than 5 weeks/10 dates. Should I even bother trying anymore?

Is a man being a late bloomer when it comes to dating a red flag?
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