Could a conflict over money end a yearslong friendship?
That appears to be the case in a Reddit post that has gone viral to the tune of 11,000 upvotes. In it, user u/Mundane-Alarm-5684 shared the story of how her relationship with her childhood best friend ended after an unexpected, unauthorized charge to her card. Users rallied behind the original poster (OP) and her decision to cut ties with her friend.
In the post, the OP recounted how her best friend of many years, Anna, blindsided her with a $500 catering charge for Anna’s son’s lavish first birthday party. The friendship came to a screeching halt when Anna charged the cost of catering to the OP’s card without her consent.
A file photo of a woman appearing to be upset with her friend. A post on Reddit has gone viral after a woman took to the forum to share how her best friend made her pay for her son’s birthday catering.
stefanamer/Getty Images
“I put the catering on your card,” Anna casually announced at the party, the OP wrote. When confronted, the OP said that Anna brushed off the audacity of her action by claiming she had assumed her friend wouldn’t mind covering the hefty expense—and promised to pay her back later.
The OP refused to foot the bill, which led to a heated argument.
“I told her no way. I wasn’t paying for something she never asked permission for, and frankly, I didn’t have that kind of money just lying around,” the OP wrote. “She acted all shocked and hurt, saying I was being selfish and how it was her son’s first birthday. As if I’m supposed to go into debt for a party I didn’t even throw!”
Anna accused her of ruining her son’s special day and shared her financial struggles. Unable to tolerate the betrayal or the “guilt-tripping,” the OP blocked Anna and filed a dispute with her bank to reverse the charge. The ordeal prompted her to cut ties with Anna completely.
Reddit users echoed the sentiment of one of the top comments: “That’s fraud,” u/PetrogradSwe wrote. “If one is ‘struggling,’ one doesn’t spend $500 on a one-year-old’s birthday party. Your former friend is ridiculous.”
Etiquette expert Jo Hayes spoke to Newsweek about the situation. She validated the OP’s outrage.
“I would say that OP’s incredulity that her friend has charged this cost to her
card is fair and reasonable,” Hayes said.
She maintained that the responsibility of the lavish party fell on the OP’s friend, especially given that she didn’t express her financial struggles or ask for help beforehand.
“That was her decision—not her friend’s,” Hayes said. “As such, she must foot the bill herself. Or, if she really was desperate, ask, very kindly, if her friend would help cover some of the cost—and insist that there is no pressure to agree.”
Still, Hayes disagreed with comments that told OP to keep her friend blocked and out of her life. She said she would encourage the OP to reach out when the two are both calmer, and that it would be a shame to lose such a long-term relationship over one situation.
“In a kind, calm, but clear way, explain to her exactly what she’s explained to us in her Reddit post. Explain how it made her feel—disrespected, boundaries crossed—hopefully the friend will realize her missteps and apologize.
“If not, it may be best to implement some healthy distance/boundaries with this woman. But, I would caution against completely ‘blocking’ her for good. It’s always wise to operate from a place of love, light and openness to reconciliation.”
Despite her advice to give the friendship another chance, the overwhelming response on Reddit backed the poster’s choice to block Anna, with commenters emphasizing that such a blatant violation of trust deserved firm boundaries.
Newsweek reached out to u/Mundane-Alarm-5684 for comment via Reddit.
