My roommate’s constant demands for gourmet groceries, with promises of repayment that never came, were pushing me to my breaking point. The final straw was when she asked for a whole list of premium items for a party. I knew I had to teach her a lesson.

At first, everything was great. We split chores, had movie nights, and went out for drinks. But then, Taryn’s knack for getting others to do things for her started to show. “Hey Kelly, could you grab some milk on your way home? I’ll pay you back,” she’d say. No big deal, right? But then it escalated.

“Kelly, could you pick up some of that fancy truffle cheese for me? It’s for a study snack. I’ll pay you back, I swear!” Spoiler alert: she never did. The final straw came when she asked me to get premium items for her party: cheeses, nice fruits, imported chocolates, and good wine.

Instead of buying premium items, I went to the bargain aisle. I grabbed cheap boxed wine, processed cheese slices, bland apples and bananas, and off-brand chocolates. Taryn’s party quickly turned into a disaster. Her guests couldn’t hide their disappointment. “Uh, Taryn, are you sure this is the right wine?” one guy asked, wrinkling his nose.

Taryn was mortified, but I was done playing the fool. She finally realized she had been taking advantage of my kindness. From that day on, she never asked me to shop for her again, and our dynamic changed for the better.