Am I an awful person for dating someone who I oculd never love?

Hi there,

I see you've put plenty of thought into this already and it's become apparent that you don't feel the same way as he does. From reading the question it seems that there are two factors that tell you that it's time to end it and two that stops you from ending it.

Firstly let's discuss the reasons you should stop things here, you don't feel the same, and it is hurting you as well. Now the main reasons we date are to find someone to share our lives with, but in this case it is clear that you do not want this with your best friend, at least not in this way. Also your guilt at letting him believe that it's going fine is causing you some harm as well.

Secondly let's discuss the reasons you haven't ended it. Your hatred of being single likely stems from from some kind of loneliness that you hope a boyfriend can fulfill, in some ways yes it is easier with someone in a relationship, but it is far lonelier to stick with someone you don't feel the same about and wonder about all the "what ifs?".
Also I'd imagine you may be worried about hurting your best friend, it does seem from the description he is rather head over heels for you, but consider this, how much will you hurt him if you let this carry on? If at a later stage you decide that you don't want to continue he is going to want to know why, and if it becomes apparent that the interest was never there to begin with then that is far more hurtful than simply letting go of it before it becomes too serious.

As a parting note, I think you know yourself what you have to do if you care for both the feelings of yourself and your best friend. Just know that this may be awkward and trying but in the long run it may end up saving you from much more bitterness. If you cannot feel the same for him then let him know, and let him know that you still value him as a friend.

I hope this helps.