Does he feel sorry for me :[ ?

There's this guy, we're not exactly strangers nor friends but he's in one of my cles and we'd always smile at each other. And sadies dance is coming up, I thought it'd be worth the try if I asked him to go but I didn't do anything surprisingly since we're not close. I just went up to him and asked if he's going and if he had a date. he was smiling the whole time! but it turns out he has a date, I just smiled and said "OH, never mind." and walked away. my friends told me that he just stood there for 10 seconds smiling then went into his cl. then later on that night, I got a message from him saying "I would've went with you to sadies but my cousin told me to go with her friend already. sorry, I would've went with you tho." Is he saying that because he feels sorry for me? or because he actually did want to go with me?