Shy guy is nice to me and all but ignores me sometimes

Title says it all. So this guy and I have known each other for a year or something but we never really talked. Lots of eye contact, still going on now. I sent him snaps every now and then and we followed each other on insta, but he never sent anything back and he never liked any of my posts. And then one day he makes a joke while we're both alone, I laugh, he laughs harder, then the next week he suddenly likes my instagram post and we start a snap streak, one thing leads to another, we finally start talking about stuff, he is interested in certain stuff I have to say, we still make a lot of eye contact, and he seems interested in conversation when we're alone or when I initiate it, but he kinda seems to ignore me when I'm close by and when his friends are around (and other people). With ignore I mean that he doesn't look at me when I'm standing next to him and his friend are around, for example. Or that he doesn't start a conversation with me when I'm next to him and his friends are around. What do you guys think?