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Some people are so generous that they don’t mind paying for other people without expecting payment in return.

This man works in a close-knit restaurant where coworkers often pick up food and supplies for one another. A generous coworker regularly buys things for everyone and rarely asks for anything in return. Feeling uncomfortable with how much she had spent on him, he tried to repay her secretly.

This is a wholesome workplace problem where both people seem to be coming from a good place. Read the full story below.

AITA for paying my coworker back without her consent?

I (24M) work in a restaurant as a bartender with a lot of younger coworkers.

It’s a very pleasant work environment where most people are just very nice to each other.

So much so that a couple times a month, someone has to go to either a grocery store or the market to get some supplies or just goes because they want to before their shift.

This person would then ask the rest of the group if they want anything and either send a money request or not, depending on the amount or if they owe anyone.

This man’s coworker generously buys him and his colleagues food without asking for payment.

Now, one of my coworkers (18F) is an extremely generous person.

She loves to get people food or drinks, sometimes without even asking them, as she knows most people’s favorite orders at this point.

The thought behind it is extremely nice, and she is truly an amazing coworker and person.

However, my problem with this is that she never asks for money in return.

I know that at this point she has probably spent around 50 bucks at least on stuff for me alone, and it just feels unfair.

I tried to get her some stuff in return, even backed her some cupcakes, but it’s almost impossible to keep up.

He secretly paid her by putting the money in her bag.

Now, fast forward to a couple weeks ago. She would again ask what I wanted from the store. I said that I didn’t need anything.

I had breakfast at home, had lunch with me, and didn’t need anything else.

Despite that, she still got me some of my favorites, which was probably around 5 bucks worth of stuff.

I thanked her but also said, “Please take my money in return.” She said no, smiled, and moved on.

It just so happened that I had a 20 in cash, so I put it in her bag.

She found out and gave the money back to him.

She found it a week later and tried to give it back to me, but I refused.

She’s not mad or anything, but I could tell she isn’t happy about it.

Am I the jerk?

OP clearly wasn’t trying to upset his coworker and just wanted to make sure her generosity wasn’t being taken for granted. Even I would feel a little uncomfortable receiving so much free stuff from a coworker. Perhaps finding other ways to return her kindness would be a better compromise.

Let’s read the comments of other Redditors on this story.

This person shares some advice.

Here’s an honest opinion.

Another valid remark.

This one gives a different perspective.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an employee who gets fired, then ends up with extra cash due to a loophole in the termination letter.

Finally, plain and simple.

The best way to repay kindness is with kindness.