Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatulahi wa barakatuh,

 

In this situation, there could be any number of reasons why he takes such a long time to reply. Perhaps the reply doesn’t want to be friends with you or assuming the best there are many other good reasons that should be respected.

 

Firstly, like you said he is struggling with his studies. In this case, he may be too busy and distracted to even have the time to respond quickly. Furthermore,  may He just feels that texting back and forth is a distraction for him at this stressful time and would prefer you back off a bit for now whilst he is studying.

 

Another respectable reason for his delayed response could be that he fears Allah in being in such close contact with you. As I’m sure you are aware a friendship between a male and female outside of marriage is not permissible. As a result, he is perhaps reluctant to have too frequent contact with you in case it leads to the development of strong feelings that may eventually cause to start getting even closer in a way that is even more disliked by Allah. By delaying his responses, he is decreasing the chances of such a relationship developing, either by pushing you away or just slowing things down. This is beneficial to both of you. If this is the reason why, then he is doing it for your own good and as much as it feels like he’s not being a good friend, I’d actually be a good friend. You may say that it’s only texts and your not alone together, but taking via text can be as dangerous as being alone together in person, and can lead to the same consequences. Some may say it’s even worse because nobody can see the contact between the of you.

 

Besides, these are only speculations on his behavior. It may be something entirely different, but you would not know without asking him. However, I wouldn’t advise doing this without the presence if your mahram. Whatever the explanation, whether he’s trying to push you away, or whether he’s just too busy, it seems the potential explanations are nothing to be upset about. In fact, either way, they are to be thankful for because it is preventing you from ending up in a situation that will be even more displeasing to Allah.

 

If you do wish to take this friendship a step further, then be sure to do so in the correct way and meet with him in the presence of others, ideally your close family so that you are not alone together.

 

May Allah bless you and guide you on the straight path.