He Cheated With Our Mutual Friend—Now He's Texting Me for 'Landlord Favors'

What happens when the person who broke your heart suddenly becomes your landlord?

For one twenty-four-year-old university student, a two-year relationship ended in the most painful way imaginable. After a smooth two years together with zero major arguments, her twenty-seven-year-old boyfriend suddenly grew cold. Right as she was dealing with the sudden death of a family member, he dropped a bombshell: he had developed feelings for their twenty-two-year-old female best friend.

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The pair had secretly gone out and confessed their mutual attraction just days earlier, engaging in what many consider a textbook emotional affair. Rather than staging a chaotic confrontation, the heartbroken girlfriend simply said "Okay" and let him walk away.

What followed was a masterclass in quiet dignity. While her ex rushed off to take the new girl on late-night drives, the former girlfriend refused to hide. She continued hanging out with their mutual friend group, prompting her visibly unsettled ex to snidely ask, "Are you taking them in the divorce?"

During a five-hour drive to return her to her family home, the tables turned. The ex-boyfriend wept for three solid hours, admitting he had threw away a good thing and confessing he still loved her. Yet, he offered no real path to fix the damage he caused.

Because of housing constraints, the young woman was forced to stay in his apartment as a short-term tenant while waiting for a new lease to begin. Over the past three months, her ex has reached out at least once a week. But instead of grand romantic gestures, he sends requests for landlord favors—asking her to tidy up, conduct room inspections, water plants, and take urgent house photos, often tacking on vague messages about missing her family.

Public opinion on the situation is sharply divided. One observer noted that the ex is likely using administrative tasks as a low-effort way to keep tabs on her, warning that he is simply keeping her as a backup option after realizing the grass wasn't greener.

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Another commentator argued that his breakdown during the car ride points to genuine regret, suggesting he is awkwardly trying to maintain a bridge back into her life after realizing the magnitude of his mistake.

The drama doesn't end with romance. In a parallel dilemma of boundary-setting, a woman who endured sixteen years of disrespect from her prescription-dependent mother-in-law finally drew a line in the sand. After losing her father-in-law and her brother within nine days of each other, she announced she was completely done caretaking for the hostile matriarch.

Commenters largely rallied behind her decision, arguing that sixteen years of sacrifice is more than enough and that self-preservation must take precedence over toxic family obligations.

Our hosts weigh in on both of these explosive moral dilemmas on this week's episode of the podcast.