I think that makes sense, if he wanted to indeed just cut ties so that he could live in a more selfish way without having me around as a witness. I also think it makes sense, per Velma's post, that he just didn't love me enough and didn't know how to express that without being cruel and justifying it to himself as being my fault.
It's the disorientation that he seemed to be experiencing that I keep thinking about (though I wish I could stop). He said he couldn't eat or sleep, and acted hysterical, and there was no calm or empathetic conversation. He also really screwed himself—we have a lease that he is now paying the fee to break, and he had sold most of his own belongings when he moved in with me.
I've broken up with a lot of people, but have always had a talk or two beforehand to try to work out the issues. And I have always tried to deliver my message with thoughtfulness and gratitude to the other person. I certainly have never put on an actor's performance beforehand so that they would be surprised. But hey, it could just be that I can't understand this because it's just not the mindset that I'm operating out of, and it's no longer my job to need to deal with that mindset, so I'll try to move on.