Sometimes, walking away from a “friend” is the best thing you can do.

So, what would you do if a former friend and employee tried to reach out to you after a fallout because they wanted to reconnect? Would you give them the benefit of the doubt? Or would you keep it polite and close the door forever?

In the following story, one woman deals with this scenario and has no urge to reconnect. Here’s what’s going on.

AITA for closing the door instead of engaging with an ex friend’s follow up messages?

I (33F) was close friends with “Sadie” (35F) for years before we worked together. I started my own business and later brought her in AS AN EMPLOYEE because we had talked about collaborating.

Things deteriorated quickly. Our working styles didn’t align, and when issues came up, I tried to address them directly and arranged meetings with a counselor. She declined to participate and eventually resigned.

I was relieved I didn’t have to fire her, but hurt and confused about how abruptly the friendship ended.

Sadie’s follow-up messages made her rather uncomfortable.

Recently, she contacted me out of the blue with an emotional message, saying she’d been thinking about me, apologizing for not going to counseling, admitting she hadn’t always rooted for my success, and hoping we could be close again one day.

I replied politely, thanked her for owning her part, said working together hadn’t been the right fit, but that we tried, and wished her well.

She then sent follow-up messages that included spiritual/astrology content about our “compatibility,” suggesting I was avoidant, anxious, and needed to “prove my love,” and that the ball was in my court. This made me uncomfortable.

In no way is she interested in being friends with Sadie again.

I responded briefly that I’d been busy, thanked her again for reaching out, and kept things cordial without reopening the friendship.

I also learned that a few months earlier, she had contacted one of my new employees, “Jim,” about possibly working together. He ignored her and didn’t tell me at the time to avoid tension. Knowing this made her outreach feel less genuine.

I don’t want to restart a personal relationship, but I tried to stay polite and professional.

AITA?

Yikes! No wonder she doesn’t want to be friends with that woman.

Let’s see if the people over at Reddit agree with how she handled it.

According to this comment, that’s not friend behavior.

For this reader, it’s all very unprofessional.

If only the other messages followed that tone.

Here’s someone who thinks the friendship is over.

Sadie sounds weird, so it’s probably best she just blocks her and moves on.

If you enjoyed that story, read this one about a mom who was forced to bring her three kids with her to apply for government benefits, but ended up getting the job of her dreams.