The one thing that makes me think "possibly not a cult?" is that they met up 4 times before the "private meeting" idea was introduced. I feel like cults usually

The one thing that makes me think "possibly not a cult?" is that they met up 4 times before the "private meeting" idea was introduced. I feel like cults usually try to start getting you integrated into the larger group earlier than that, especially if you're just some rando they met at a cafe. Some of the other points in their interaction do heavily hint at cult, though. Could just be a group that does recruitment differently than I'm used to. I did missionary work in a cult once (not going to name which group, because I don't want to derail this thread arguing over whether this particular group is a cult or not), and the described behaviors and conversation topics certainly ring a bell.