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Two people can make the exact same decision and end up living completely different realities because of it.

One student committed to a university plan built entirely around staying close to her best friend, both of them sacrificing significant money to make it happen.

While her friend adjusted well and genuinely enjoyed the experience, she found herself quietly overwhelmed by mental and financial struggles that grew heavier as time went on.

Wanting to leave after the semester felt necessary, yet the guilt of breaking a shared promise and leaving her friend to handle a new roommate alone made walking away feel almost impossible.

Loyalty has a way of complicating even the clearest decisions.

Keep reading for the full story.

WIBTA for Leaving my friend in college

Hello, I am having troubles knowing whether I’m doing the right thing because I feel that my friend would suffer because of me.

The student explains the situation.

We decided last year that we would go to the same university together, same dorm and everything.

She sacrificed a lot of money to be here, and so did I.

But her college experience turned out to be quite different from her friend’s.

The thing is, I REALLY REALLY hate it here, while she loves it.

Unfortunately, I’m struggling both mentally and financially.

She knows she’s going to have to break the bad news eventually.

I want to tell her I want to go back home after this semester, but I feel so guilty leaving her here, since this was a thing we planned on doing together, y’know?

She thinks about how this will ultimately impact her friend.

She’d have to get a whole new roommate and deal with all that comes with that, on top of being alone.

I don’t know if I should stick it out, but it’s becoming harder and harder, and I feel more guilty as the days go on.

AITA?

Being a considerate person comes with a fair amount of heartache from time to time.

What did Reddit have to say?

This user thinks the core issue really isn’t about her friend at all.

Plans change, and that’s just part of life.

She needs to put her own mental health first.

If she chose to stay, it would end up being a bad thing for both of them.

A plan she made a year ago doesn’t get to outrank how she’s doing right now.

This student put in just as much money and effort as her friend did, which means her struggling counts just as much as her friend’s happiness.

Worrying about a roommate situation is admirable, but it’s not enough of a reason to stay somewhere that’s actively wearing her down.

Guilt is really good at convincing people to put everyone else first, and that habit rarely ends well.