She Was Her Friend Group’s Only Driver for Years, But When She Lost Her Job and Asked Them to Chip In for Gas, They Weren’t Interested
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Being the friend with a car often comes with an unspoken expectation that you’ll be the group’s designated driver.
In this case, it was perfectly fine, until things changed.
After unexpectedly losing her job, she told her friends that she couldn’t be their driver for free anymore.
So when the group started planning another weekend getaway, she asked them to chip in for the gas before they left.
Welp, they were quite surprised. Even though she had already told them things had changed for her.
Read the full story below.
AITA for not driving my friends to the lake after they refused to chip in for gas?
It’s just how things have worked out in my group of friends for the past few years, I’ve almost always been the one driving everyone around. To barbecues, to summer cottages, on trips out of town, and so on.
I hardly drink, plus I’m the only one with a car, so it just sort of became the norm that whenever we needed to go somewhere, everyone looked to me.
It didn’t really bother me before. I had a decent, stable job, I had money, and gas wasn’t really an issue.
Sometimes someone would transfer the money later, sometimes they’d forget altogether, but I didn’t really keep track.
But things changed.
A couple of months ago, I got laid off. Now I’m working somewhere else, but the pay is way lower, and money has become really tight.
After paying rent and bills, I had very little left until payday, and I just couldn’t afford a full tank of gas. I told my friends about this ahead of time, without making a big deal out of it.
Recently, they suggested going on an overnight trip to the lake. About six or seven of us.
A grill, meat, tents, the whole shebang. And right away, they started discussing what time I’d pick them up.
She didn’t feel so good about this arrangement, though.
The rest either didn’t have a car or a driver’s license, or they planned to drink and didn’t want to stay sober.
I calmly said I could give them a ride, but only if everyone chipped in for gas up front, because I simply didn’t have enough money to even fill up properly. Everyone agreed.
The day before the trip, I messaged the group chat to remind them that I needed the money right away, otherwise I just wouldn’t be able to leave.
In response, the usual don’t worry about it, we’ll pay you back later, we wouldn’t let you down started up.
They didn’t understand.
I wrote again that I wasn’t going anywhere without the money.
No one responded seriously, except for a couple of jokes, so I figured they’d found another option. In the end, I just didn’t go anywhere that morning.
And then everyone suddenly started freaking out.
They wrote to me that I’d ruined their weekend because they’d already bought food and were counting on me.
Someone even said I’d become greedy and money-grubbing after getting fired.
But I really don’t understand what I was supposed to do. I literally didn’t even have enough money to fill up my car.
AITA?
Her friends are really immature.
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What did Reddit think?
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Exactly.
A reader shares their thoughts.
Something to consider.
Yup.
Another reader chimes in.
Simple solution.
Real friends or just mature people would adapt to her current possibilities instead of completely ignoring what she told them.
Asking for gas money ahead of time isn’t even unusual, especially for longer trips involving several passengers.
The assumption that one person would continue carrying the financial burden without anyone stopping to consider their situation is also a red flag.
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