Does he like me or just like the attention I give him? Should I just get over him without knowing his real feelings or say something? If so what?

[Anonymous]

I’ve been friends with this guy since like 8th grade (we are sophomores now), we are pretty close friends. everyone i know says he likes me but he has a pretty flirty personality and is the annoying kind of flirty like throws things at me or playfully makes fun of me. I can just tell by the way he looks at me and immediately smiles even when i’m not looking back that there is something he likes about me.
He broke up with his girlfriend early this year and immediately started talking to me A LOT we got very close and would talk multiple times per day. A few months later i told him i was catching feelings for him and he wrote this long paragraph about how he isn’t ready for a relationship but if it was a different time we would be something more and told me everything he likes about me and how sorry he was and how bad he felt he also said that he didn’t want to end our flirty friendship because I am really special to him and he likes what we are now.
Flash forward from that winter to now almost summer and we r still in the same place we have been. i don’t want to date and he knows that but i want to be the only girl he talks to and like friends w benefits or something. We have never hung out in person besides at party’s and I really wanna hangout with him this summer but I don’t know what to say because I don’t know if he still feels the same about me or if he just likes how i laugh or look and admire him because i really like him and i think he can tell.
should i say something to him before summer starts? I don’t know how he feels but i don’t want to have another awkward conversation about it if he still doesn’t want to be something with me. I can't stand just being friends with him bc i want something more i don’t know if he does though. He said that he talks to me as much as he can and he is up north every weekend. I know he flirts with me and I know we r “flirty friends” but i want to hangout with him this summer but how do i even ask?

Updates

+1 y

update : he’s been ignoring me for 2 days after school now like doesn’t talk to me at all in any way but at school it’s a different story. I don't know what’s going on might just block him!!

[Guy13]

If there’s this much Drana already then it’s probably not going to workout anyway

[Iron_Man]

You’re not even 18 let it go you have to graduate high school first start preparing for college

[In_Trance]

I think you're overthinking this. Just hang out and have fun

[Avicenna]

You need to talk to him. Communication is key.

[Anonymous]

Meet him somewhere somehow

[Opinion Owner]

When my friend ignored me I stuck around him and kept the friendship and brought it back though it may not be as strong as before