dunno
I find it strange that you would rather lie (yes making something up is a 100% lie except in the rarest occasions like for Shalom Bayis) than be mature and honest and tell them that you are dating and you won’t always be available. Saying you are dating isn’t talking about your dating life. It should be a given to your friends that you are dating and if they are normal people they will respect your wishes for them not to pry into your dating life. If you have to hide fom your friends the fact that you are dating and you would rather lie to them than tell them then you and them aren’t really friends, you are just people pretending to be friends.
Dont agree. I think its an issue of tznius. Plus, especially among (some) girls, dates do not always come that easily. And while a friend may know someone is dating, its different to actually be told that to your face. No reason to cause bad feelings unnecessarily.