I FEEL GUILTY

i m 17f. during 10th (when i was 15) i came to know that one of my male classmate's parents died due to covid n cancer. i felt very sad and i started talking to him out of sympathy coz he didnt have many friends. slowly he started liking me but i never liked him romantically. when he was on the verge of proposing me, i said "i will propose u myself when i will be ready for this".. he waited for so long. i realised that i m giving him false hope. so i started ghosting him in excuse of studies so that he will move on.. i feel very guilty that he doesnt even know that i started talking to him out of sympathy but my friendship was not out of sympathy. i feel really guilty.. did i do wrong by ghosting him? should i confront him that i dont liked him romantically?