That is just being friends. When someone is really past the stage of acquaintance in good terms into a real friend we hang out one on one frequently. I find it easier to just hang out with one person because I don't have to try to divide my attention or be just as funny and engaging to multiple people. If I just wanna chat with friend A all night, I don't have to worry about excluding friend B this way.

Also, I am not touching someone I'm not explicitly dating but could be. We might be in different age groups, or just different subcultures, but it would be very weird, intrusive behavior to just be touching someone that I might be interested from their point of view.