What happens when passive-aggressive cleaning tactics go too far?

A frustrated roommate decided to get creative (and a little fungal) to make a point about dirty dishes.

But when a mushroom in the sink led to a huge life change, things escalated faster than anyone expected.

Read on for the story!

AITA for planting a mushroom in my roommate’s dirty dishes to make a point?

I (25M) have a roommate, Jake (26M), who has a serious issue with leaving dirty dishes in the sink.

We’ve had several discussions about this, but nothing changes. The mess was getting out of hand, and it was really starting to affect my mental state.

Last week, I decided to take a more extreme approach to make my point.

I found a mushroom growing outside and decided to plant it in one of the dishes that had been in the sink for a couple of weeks.

I thought maybe seeing actual fungus growing in his dishes would make him realize how bad things had gotten.

No words for this.

I didn’t mean to cause any drama, but Jake’s girlfriend ended up finding the dish first. She was horrified, and the situation led to a big argument between them.

Apparently, this incident made her realize how much of a slob Jake is, and it ended up being a breaking point for their relationship.

Now Jake is furious with me, blaming me for his breakup and calling me a jerk for creating such a situation.

Can we say “plot twist”?

I really didn’t intend for things to escalate like this, but at the same time his habits are disgusting and need to change regardless of whether his dishes are fertile ground for portobellos.

I feel bad about it so I texted his girlfriend to explain that it was just a joke but she’s had it with him and seems to be done whether it was real or not.

I’m worried this is going to ruin my friendship with Jake but at the same time don’t really feel it’s all on me. Our friends seem to be siding with him so far.

A*****e or not?

While the mushroom may have gotten his roommate’s attention, it also uprooted a relationship.

Reddit doesn’t think so.

This person says Jake ruined his own relationship by being such a slob.

This person concurs…

And this person can’t get over the tactic. And that it worked.

Who knew a little fungus could cause so much drama?

Sometimes dirty dishes lead to dirty tricks.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check out what happened when a family gave their in-laws a free place to stay in exchange for babysitting, but things changed when they don’t hold up their end of the bargain.