DR. WALLACE: I'm a girl who's 17, and I've been dating on and off. You could say that I have not yet met the "right one" for me. I'm dating a guy who's nice enough, but since we were strangers only a few months ago, I'm still just getting to know him. So far, so good.

Last weekend, I attended an event out of town with my family, and while there, I happened to meet a guy my age. He and I talked for almost an hour, and it felt like we were interested in each other. He even gave me his number and told me to call him sometime.

We live about a half-hour apart, so it's not too far. But even though the other guy and I haven't specified that we are exclusive, I still can't bring myself to make contact with the guy from out of town just as a friend.

This might sound crazy, but I have this gut feeling that I should deal with one situation at a time, even though I may never get a chance to spend more time with the interesting guy I met at that event.

Am I being illogical here? I could just call or text the new guy to keep in touch with him while I let my current dating situation play out. If I don't ever contact him, he'll think I wasn't ever really interested in him. What should I do? — Confused, via email

CONFUSED: You're loyal, pragmatic and cautious when it comes to interpersonal relationships, and these are all good qualities in their own right when applied logically.

I admire how you are honestly trying to navigate through this dilemma. You didn't attend the event with your family in search of meeting someone, but by happenstance, you did meet someone interesting.

Your loyalty to your existing relationship is also admirable. Continue to let this relationship run its natural course. And since you might be interested in getting to know this new guy better in the future, do reach out instead of ignoring the offer to make contact.

Mention in a text or call that you found your new friend interesting, but you are presently dating someone (and you don't have to go into any details). Mention that if things change on your end someday, you may reach out again to see what his situation is. (Of course, later, he may be spoken for as well.) You can likely feel at ease with this honest reply, and it will also convey to your new friend some insight into your personality, integrity and honesty. That's a very good thing for him to realize, no matter what does or does not manifest itself in the future.

HIS DORM RENOVATION WAS REVEALING

DR. WALLACE: My boyfriend and I are both 21-year-old college students. We've been together for nearly two years.

His dorm is going under construction this summer, and mine is not. He wants me to move out of my dorm room and into an apartment with him that he plans to get soon. At first, I just thought he was just suggesting it, but lately I've been picking up the vibe that he is trying to tell me what to do.

Based on the strange vibe, I opened up a deep discussion with him about what he was actually saying, and I'm glad I did! He told me that if we were serious about staying together, we needed to move in together early this summer. I suggested that he find a room somewhere in town on his own, and he got angry! He said if we loved each other, we needed to move in together since he has nowhere else to go.

I was surprised, and as you can imagine, things have become a bit chilly between us. Crazy how one's relationship can change just because some dorms are going through planned renovations at the end of the semester. Was I right to hold my ground on this? — Surprised by His Reaction, via email

SURPRISED BY HIS REACTION: You are absolutely correct to hold your ground. His claim that he "has nowhere to go" is a weak ploy to attempt to manipulate you.

He's opportunistically using the dorm renovations to try to leverage you into premature cohabitation. This is a huge red flag, and I encourage you to think carefully about the viability of this relationship overall.

Good relationship partners do not present leveraged ultimatums to each other to get their way. Think back to see if you can recall any other warning signs that you might have missed previously. And just as "construction" changed the course of his input into your relationship, you may find it wise to consider how "manipulation" has changed the course of how you now think about this relationship.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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