Where the body points
In a group, notice feet and torsos. When someone is glad you have joined, the body opens toward you: shoulders square, the circle widens, someone physically steps back to make a gap. When you are being absorbed out of courtesy, the torso stays where it was and only the head turns to acknowledge you. The second version is not hostility — people are often mid-conversation and genuinely distracted — but it is useful information about whether this is a good moment.
There is also the proximity question. Warmth usually shortens distance by a small amount: a half-step in, a hand briefly on the back of a chair, a lean across the table when you start talking. And look for mirroring you did not initiate — if you pick up your cup and they pick up theirs a few seconds later, you are probably in sync rather than being managed.
What happens after you stop talking
The most convincing signal of all is not visual. It is whether what you said survives the conversation. People who are genuinely interested ask the second question — not the polite opener, but the follow-up that proves they were listening. They remember next time that your father was having a procedure, that the flat sale was wobbling, that you were dreading Thursday. They send the link that made them think of you, which is a form of saying I carry you around in my head a bit.
Repair is the other one. Someone who values you will come back after an awkward moment: a text saying that came out wrong, a slightly stiff hello followed by a warmer one an hour later. Indifference does not bother repairing. It simply moves on.
