26-year-old puts 27-year-old roommate to the test by refusing to clean after her anymore: 'I thought you were the one keeping things clean?'

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Mar 7, 2025 4:00 PM EST

It's hard to be a neat freak when your roommate seems to be the exact opposite. Sure, perhaps your personalities mesh well in all the other ways. However, if the people who live under the same roof have completely different expectations about what they consider to be a clean and livable environment, then both parties might be in for some trouble.

It's no secret that roommates can get on one another's nerves without having to try very hard. That's why when they are trying hard to bother one another, disaster becomes inevitable. Keep scrolling below for this story about two roommates who argued over cleanliness! 

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    Cheezburger Image 10476432640
    via Unsplash+ (Oleg Ivanov)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • One of the women living in this apartment self-identifies as an obsessive cleaner, though she does not seem to have a problem with the occasional dish left in the sink. That being said, her roommate was clearly pushing her buttons unintentionally with that rule. In fact, the roommate had a very different idea about what their living dynamic was, claiming to her friends and mother over the phone that she was the clean roommate. This, naturally, aggravated the real person who was pulling the weight when it came to dusting, vacuuming, and scrubbing…

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    I (26F) have lived with my roommate, Jenna (27F), for about a year and a half. We met through mutual friends and got along well enough at first. She's fun to hang out with, we have similar schedules, and for the most part, we respect each other's space. The one issue? Cleaning.
    via FitJamiex
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    From day one, I took on more of the household chores. Not because I love cleaning, but because Jenna is the type who will leave dishes in the sink "to soak" for days, or let hair pile up in the shower drain until it's practically its own organism. At
    via FitJamiex
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    first, I didn't mind, some people just don't notice messes the way others do. I figured if I kept things relatively tidy, she'd eventually catch on and do her part. Spoiler: She did not.
    via FitJamiex
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    I started feeling resentful when I realized she wasn't even attempting to contribute. If I didn't sweep the floors, they wouldn't get swept. If I didn't wipe the counters, they'd stay grimy. I brought it up casually a few times, saying things like,
    via FitJamiex
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    "Hey, could you grab the vacuum today?" or "Maybe we can trade off on bathroom duty?" She'd always say "Oh, for sure!" and then... nothing.
    via FitJamiex
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    The real breaking point, though, was when I overheard her telling our mutual friends that she was the one who "keeps the place running." I was in my room, and she was on a FT call with some friends, chatting about how
    via FitJamiex
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    exhausting it was to always be the one "picking up the slack" at home. She even told her mom that she was the only one making sure the apartment stayed livable.
    via FitJamiex
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    That night, I asked her kind of jokingly if she really thought she did all the cleaning. She laughed and said, "Well, I mean, I do my part." I just nodded, deciding then and there that I was done. If
    via FitJamiex
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    she really believed she was the one keeping the place together, she could prove it. So, I stopped cleaning. Completely.
    via FitJamiex
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    Dishes piled up. The bathroom sink became a toothpaste crime scene. Dust bunnies turned into dust wolves. I waited.
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    At first, Jenna didn't seem to notice. But after about a week, she finally commented, "Wow, the place is kind of a mess." I just said, "Yeah, weird, right?" She
    via FitJamiex
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    muttered something about being busy and wiped down one counter, ONE SINGLE COUNTER. Before sighing dramatically and going back to scrolling her phone.
    via FitJamiex
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    Cheezburger Image 10476433152
    via Unsplash+ (Oleg Ivanov)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    Another week passed, and I could tell she was starting to get annoyed. One night, she came into my room and asked, "So... are you planning on doing the dishes?" I said, "Oh, I thought you were the one keeping things clean?"
    via FitJamiex
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    She got super defensive, saying she does clean, just in a "less obvious way" and that I was being petty. I said I just assumed she'd keep doing what she said she'd been doing this whole time.
    via FitJamiex
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    She rolled her eyes and said I was making things uncomfortable for no reason. I don't love living in a dirty apartment, but I refuse to clean up just so she can keep pretending she's the responsible one. But now I'm wondering if I took it too far.
    via FitJamiex
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    AITA for letting the apartment turn into a disaster just to prove a point?
    via FitJamiex
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    Cheezburger Image 10476432896
    via Unsplash+ (Oleg Ivanov)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    Fancy-Conversati... • 1h ago We can all agree that this is petty NTA that being said,
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    LustrillaRain 1h ago NTA. Sometimes you gotta let the chaos reign to expose the system, ya know? But real talk, maybe it's time for a roommate meeting with a chore chart or something, because living in a 'toothpaste crime scene' ain't it.
    via FitJamiex
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    Shadow4summer · 1h ago • Maybe she'll realize she wasn't doing as much as she thought she was.
    via FitJamiex
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    Sea-Operation-61... • 1h ago Did you actually prove a point? ... Maybe? Did you actually do anything to solve the problem... No. NTA but - What's your next move? Are y'all just going to keep living in a disgusting house or are you going to try to communicate with each other to solve the problem?
    via FitJamiex
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    . Limp-Paint-7244 49m ago Nope. Just wash your own dishes. Wipe one counter. Wipe one spot at the table. Keep your own room (and bathroom if you have separates) immaculate.
    via FitJamiex
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    Wash all the dishes then let her know from now on she has to wash her own (as she should have been) wash all your own. When you have a sink full of dishes go and deposit them in her bed. Maybe she'll get the hint
    via FitJamiex

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cleaning aita AITAH bad roommates psycho roommate entitled people karma roommate pranks roommates entitled people apartment
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