did he ghost me? what happened

Some background: I (27F) know this guy (28M) from our sports club. We are not in the same team, but we ended up in a sort of friend group with other people from the club. Together, we occasionally go out or have dinner, etc.

So we have known each other for a while, but we’re not particularly close. We randomly started texting a bit more, and he asked me out on a date. I didn’t really see it coming. We were not each other’s usual type, but I thought, why not? Our first date was surprisingly really amazing. We talked for hours and laughed a lot. I invited him to stay the night, but we’re both a bit drunk, so we only made out. We still talked a lot, and overall, it felt really good. This was a month ago.

We continued dating and kept seeing each other 2-3 times a week. I feel like we really bonded during this time. We shared a lot about our lives, values, goals, etc. We also told each other we really liked each other. Sometimes, we would just hang out after our own separate evening plans and sleep together (still no sex, only hand stuff. He initiated a few times, but I told him I’d like to wait a bit longer. But it felt really intimate at times)
I was fine with all this: keeping it casual. I wasn’t in a rush to have a serious conversation about what was going on between us and where we were heading relationship wise. I feel like we both were just going with the flow and enjoying each other’s company.

One night he was staying at my place, and we both couldn’t sleep and i was turned on, so I decided fuck it let’s just have sex already. It didn’t really go well, but to be honest, that’s normal for the first time, it didn’t bother me at least. The next day, the vibe is kind of weird. But I brushed it off to us both being tired from a rough night and the lack of sleep. We texted a bit the next day, and I asked if he would like to meet up again before he goes on a 3 week holiday in a few days… but no response.

He is now on his holiday and still havent heard from him. What happened? I am so confused. Did I become too much of a convenience for him, and he just lost interest after sex? We are in a friend group that kind of knows we are dating. I get ghosting is an easy out, but we are still going to see each other…

My questions are: What made him suddenly change his mind? And what should I do? Should I text him a text for closure? Should I tell the friend group what’s going on? I am seeing the rest of them this weekend, and he is still gone for his holiday. They know we’re seeing each other and probably have questions about how it’s going between us… I am okay with it ending here and going back to just being friends (although I’d need some distance first to get over him), but I am mainly just disappointed he couldn’t just be honest with me.

Just to add: I have little to no experience with casual dating. I am used to being in long-term, serious relationships. But the dating scene has changed, and I am trying to make sense of it all..