Nobody likes a mooch. And it’s not just the relentless asking. Remember when Jimmy asked for a pencil that one time in school and you got it back all chewed up? That’s why we can’t have nice things. Gross.
A Redditor recently went to the AITA, or Am I The A-Hole, community to ask if she was wrong to go against a mooch in seemingly drastic, yet at that point very logical ways. Her boyfriend would not stop using her beauty products, namely things for skincare and other toiletries, despite being confronted about it. This led to her buying a safe for it.
The mooch, needless to say, was anything but happy about it.
More Info: Reddit
You know things are getting serious if you need to buy a safe for your beauty products. No, not a burglar—just a moocher
Image source: Agronauti Cosmetics (not the actual photo)
So, 21-year-old Reddit user u/pinkybinderz has been having problems with her boyfriend of 2 years. You see, for the longest time, she has been earning more than him, so she would naturally pick up the slack in some regards. He’s a gym-goer, so he’s also in the habit of handling toiletries and bathroom rituals. This means she would buy certain products for him.
As for herself, she has a skin condition. One that, if left untended, might flare up and cause some serious health problems. Some of the products she uses, she uses for this particular condition, so, needless to say, it’s vital.
A woman recently went to the AITA community to ask if she's wrong for making her toiletries inaccessible to her boyfriend by means of a safe
Image source: pinkybinderz
Well, she switched jobs. And that meant that money was tighter than usual. This also meant no more riding the freebie toiletry train as it had just arrived at its destination and wasn't going anywhere else anytime soon. He was now expected to buy his own.
OP thought she had reached an agreement on this topic, but started noticing she was running out of products faster than usual. She broached the topic with him several more times. Figured that should be enough to get the point across.
Nope.
You see, talking didn't work—he would continue to use her $220 face wash and the like—so she had to take it to the next level
Image source: pinkybinderz
The last straw was her $220 face wash, which was supposed to be used sparingly. In theory, it should have lasted her 6 months. It was to be used to manage her eczema, a condition in which patches of skin become inflamed, itchy, cracked, rough, or can even blister in some cases. In fact, it’s a prescription. And if she runs out, bad things can happen to good people.
Well, after having not used it in a while, she found out it was empty. And when the boyfriend was confronted about it, his reaction was laughter and a refusal to replace it, especially after hearing the price. So, OP took inventory and deduced that she was out $800 in 3 months product-wise, all pointing at the boyfriend.
Since talking didn’t work, the next best thing was for her to buy a safe. But as one commenter put it accurately: “if you’re at the ‘buy a safe because I can’t trust him to not use my stuff’ stage, just break up.” How’s that for subtle foreshadowing?
All in all, the boyfriend managed to use up $800 worth of beauty products in 3 months, and you can get why the safe upset him dearly
Image source: pinkybinderz
Image source: Ron Lach (not the actual photo)
As you might have guessed, once the boyfriend found out, he lost it. He thought she was over-reacting and that she didn’t trust him. What is more, their mutual friends seemed to be on his side. But none of them really understood that she had been hospitalized because of a huge flare-up after running out of product.
OP provided some updates once the post on Reddit went viral. In them, she explained that she had decided to break up with him as there was another last straw—he had been taking her steroids, ones she was prescribed, hoping they would make him buff for the gym. Meanwhile, she had to find insecurities, flare-ups, and other unnecessary stress that could have been avoided if only he had not done what he did.
As of now, OP’s staying with a friend. She gave him a week to move out. She concluded with a thank you to the community for helping her make this decision.
Folks online were having none of it, though, as they were all for her dumping him, which she eventually did
And speaking of the community, folks on AITA ruled that she was not at fault here. While the whole safe thing did feel extreme, it was justified given the context. A context of disrespect and abuse, one that is deserving of a breakup.
Nearly everyone was suggesting a breakup, which led to one. Folks did a very good job validating OP, explaining to her everything that is wrong about the situation: her mistrust is due to him not doing anything that would make him trustworthy; he’s literally stealing; he’s ignoring her pleas as someone who’s supposed to be a significant other; and the like.
As of this article, the post has 18,500 upvotes, a handful of Reddit awards, and over 2,000 comments discussing the matter. You can read the entire post and folks’ comments in context here. Or you could stay here and tell us your thoughts on who’s right or wrong in the comment section below!