If your friend makes the time, that’s a good sign. Friends make time for each other and don’t act squeamish or as if they’d rather be somewhere else. Sometimes your friend may be genuinely busy and that’s fine, just as long as your friend makes time to be together, when it’s appropriate, such as during breaks or lunch, perhaps on a weekend, during vacation time, etc. If your friend doesn’t want to make the time or comes up with a lot of excuses every time you try, then you have a warning sign that he or she is not keen to be around you much. If you have arranged going somewhere together and your friend keeps pulling out on such arrangements, that’s a telling sign too. Realize that nobody is “always busy” – that is just an excuse showing they don’t wish to prioritize you. If your friend ditches you almost all the time, and it doesn’t seem like a joke, that means he/she isn’t really a good friend.
You should try to evaluate the relationship dynamic and make sure that there is balance in your friendship. It shouldn’t be one sided, with you giving all of your time consistently and feeling like energy is being sucked up.
Listen for verbal clues, and watch for physical and emotional clues as well.
Test your friend. Tell him or her a fake secret you have, and see if your friend makes rumors about the matter or not. Make sure that your fake secret is scandalous enough but does not involve anyone but you.
A friend is someone who gives you the liberty to be yourself. Anything less is not true friendship.
A good friendship is one in which each friend needs only what the person has to give of themselves, not their material wealth, their connections or their power. It’s about the intangible of “I get you. And you get me. "
When making your decision, keep in mind that the fact you have had to question this friend’s loyalty is a red flag. Generally, the only people you owe loyalty to are those who don’t cause you to question theirs.
