In my experience both personally and professionally, the solution is to not overthink it, and to just ask. I find that I am too often wrong about the underlying

In my experience both personally and professionally, the solution is to not overthink it, and to just ask. I find that I am too often wrong about the underlying motivations and reasoning (usually it's more benign than I think), so just asking leads to much healthier results. In the vast majority of cases, asking someone creates a venue for you to gain clarity and address anything that needs addressing, especially if you suspect it's a negative emotion towards you.