So you're saying the OP is lying. He said to him, she was a female friend, nothing more.
I'm not saying you're wrong, but if what you say is true, then he is lying.
Thats blunt but perhaps ..true. Let me say it like this;
This is the kinda lie we as men way too often tell ourselves!
We all been in situations( predicaments)where we played it safe, and went along with the storyline that " me and her, are just friends ". While all along we knew damn well that IF the opportunity to sleep with her would present itself we would pull the trigger immediately!
If an ex contacts you after many years it already ...questionable whether you should entertain the idea of building a new form of contact/ communication. If its a female friend you had feelings for while you lingered in the friendzone? Imo that's even worse!
If she was a fat ,ugly hb 0,5 why would OP make a thread that reads like a romcom? Imo this is the kinda thing that keeps a man from becoming the best version of himself.
So without saying that OP isn't trustworthy or anything, it still is a subtle form of lying , a typical white lie a man tells to himself.