Most of us connect many deep feelings to our sexual experiences, even when we think we are just meeting our physical needs. Perhaps your different ethnic and religious backgrounds stop you from feeling that he could mean so much more to you. Perhaps he has deeper feelings for you than he acknowledges to himself or to you. It is true that repeated physical experiences create deeper feelings and bonds with the people we share them with, whether or not we are conscious of them. That is what your friends are trying to tell you.
Virginity is more than a physically anatomical structure.
It is a way of thinking about our sexual selves. Remember, even young men will describe themselves as virgins if they have not had intercourse. You are quite right to believe that deeper emotions could come out of a sexual relationship. It may be that your 'readiness' is not for a sexual experience, but for a much more meaningful bond with someone else. By waiting as long as you have, you demonstrate that you are a young woman of admirable character and uncommon self-control.