Sharing a living space means juggling comfort, boundaries, and sometimes difficult decisions.

When one roommate asked if her newly unemployed boyfriend could move in, it threatened to shake up the peaceful living balance they’d worked so hard for.

You’ll want to read on for this one.

AITA for refusing to let my roommate’s boyfriend move into our apartment?

My roommate Anne (25F) and I (24F) share a two-bedroom flat. We’ve had a great time living together for two years.

This is our only home, and our lease makes that clear.

We each pay our own share of the bills.

But one day an unforeseen circumstance changes everything.

Anne’s boyfriend Jake (27M) lost his job and couldn’t pay his rent.

Anne asked if he could stay in our room for a short time while he gets his life back on track.

Right off the bat, she was against this idea.

I told her I didn’t feel good about it because I wasn’t sure.

Adding a third person would make our room even smaller than it is now.

On top of that, Jake and I don’t get along very well.

He’s sometimes rude, loud, and messy.

Anne tries to rationalize it, but she’s still very against this idea.

She told me it would only be a month or two, and she even offered to lower my rent while he was there.

I still said no, though, because I like living alone and don’t want to deal with the trouble that might arise.

Now it seems like the whole world is against her decision.

She’s mad at me now and says I’m not being fair and that I need to learn more about Jake’s situation.

A lot of people agree with me that I can refuse.

Some friends that we both know are on her side and think I should help her.

I’m sorry I’m making things harder for Anna, but I also think I have the right to keep my home safe.

AITA?

Being a good roommate doesn’t have to mean saying yes to every request.

What did Reddit think?

The potential cost just isn’t worth it.

If her other friends want to help out so badly, they should put their money where their mouth is.

Maybe consulting the lease agreement could give her some needed leverage.

Frankly, she doesn’t owe her roommate’s boyfriend anything.

Saying no to her roommate wasn’t easy, but it was necessary to preserve her comfort.

Sometimes you just have to put your own needs first.

If you liked that post, check out this story about a guy who was forced to sleep on the couch at his wife’s family’s house, so he went to a hotel instead.