16-year-old demands friends wait for her at the train station since she won't make it to the train in time, they refuse, forcing her to take the later train alone: ‘We want to be on time’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Nov 20, 2025 2:00 PM EST

One pet peeve that many people have is being late all the time. Dealing with people who are always late to things, whether it's a friendly get-together, a doctor's appointment, or a job interview, can be tiring. As much as one might try to be patient and come to terms with someone's tardiness, we all reach a breaking point and force a change.

Maybe the experience in the story below is the breaking point this friend group needed.

This trio of 17-year-old students had a college trip to London planned, and they had to be there on time. They all talked the night before, checked train schedules, and settled on the time they all had to be at the train station so they could get to the college on time. 

Except when morning came, one friend was extremely late, and it was clear that she was not going to make it to the train on time. Instead of waiting for her and arriving late together, the other 2 got on the train without her, leaving her alone to wait for the next train.

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  • While it is definitely not fun to be forced to travel alone, maybe this experience will teach this friend to be more mindful of her time, since it is not the first time she has been late to important things like these…

  • Cheezburger Image 10576566528
    via Shernee Lau

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • AITA for getting the train without my friend because she was late?

    The other day I (17NB) had a trip into London for college, I had to make my own way there so I agreed with 2 of my friends (both 16F) in the same class that we would go together.
    via bowieapple
  • We had to get 1 train and 2 tubes there, this was the route our teacher advised us to get.
    via bowieapple
  • The night before I checked the times for the first train and there was one at 8:15 (we had to be there at 9:40) so I told both my friends to arrive at 8 which they said was fine.
    via bowieapple
  • The morning of the trip I was up early and so was Friend A - she was messaging me at 6 am to double check the train time, what we needed for the trip etc.
    via bowieapple
  • I walked to the train station and got there at 8, on my walk both my friends were messaging me asking if I was on my way.
    via bowieapple
  • Friend A was on her way too and Friend B had been there since 7:45. When I got to the train station only B was there, we waited a bit for A who said she was close but after a good few minutes she still hadn't arrived so I messaged her to just meet us on the platform.
    via bowieapple
  • We got to the platform and the train was coming in a few minutes, we were both starting to panic as A wasn't here yet.
    via bowieapple
  • She finally messaged us that she was at the station but she had no money on her travel card and needed to top it up.
    via bowieapple
  • Cheezburger Image 10576566784
    via Maridav

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • As she was doing that our train arrived and I told her we were going to get on but she begged us to wait.
    via bowieapple
  • The next train wasn't for half an hour though and we would 100% be late if we took it especially as it was rush hour.
    via bowieapple
  • B was feeling bad about going without her so I suggested she can wait for A while I get on the train but she was nervous about travelling alone so we got on together.
    via bowieapple
  • I told A we had got on the train and explained to her we're sorry but we want to be on time and she will just have to get the next train.
    via bowieapple
  • She was really upset and I felt bad but it wasn't my fault that she was late, B and I were both on time - A was up early in the morning as well as I mentioned before, so unless some problem happened she didn't tell me about then she just left way too late.
    via bowieapple
  • She told me she had found a quicker route she would use but then shortly after told me she just wouldn't come on the trip because she felt worried about travelling alone and didn't want to get lost (fair).
    via bowieapple
  • I feel awful that she had to miss the trip but both me and B hate being late and I think what she did is a bit disrespectful.
    via bowieapple
  • She's late to school/just barely on time a lot as well so this is isn't just a one off.
    via bowieapple
  • Gorgeous 1962 She needed to ensure she had funds on her card or use her phone. She is old enough to make the journey on her own or to get there in time to join you. College is all about moments to grow up and the trip was one of them. You are not her mother.
    via Gorgeous1962
  • Eastern-Professor874 Exactly this. NTA. She hadn't even checked her travel card had money on it! Were you going to the Olympia job thing per chance? I wonder if you're from the 6th form I work at
    via Eastern-Professor874
  • OP bowieapple Haha no just a film studies trip
    via bowieapple
  • daughterofinsanity NTA. I did the same. When I was in my early 20s, two friends and I were going through customs, a return trip from Europe back to US. One friend had packed her passport in her checked luggage. She could not get through customs, she was told to go to US Embassy. She turned to us and said "you're going with me right?" Wrong! I gave her the contact for my vendor who had taken us to dinner and touring while we were in London. Then my other friend and I turned around and barely caug
    via daughterofinsanity
  • OP bowieapple Yeah I would 100% do that. Not waiting multiple days because of one person's stupid mistake
    via bowieapple
  • Ok_Anything_9871 INFO: If you are in an area where you can use a travel card (for reduced youth fares?), can you not use contactless? So could she not have just tapped straight in and paid full price for that specific section of the journey (and probably caught the train)? If this was possible she's even more ridiculous.
    via Ok_Anything_9871
  • OP bowieapple Yeah we can but I'm assuming she didn't have enough money on her contactless; she usually says she can't buy stuff when we go shopping or buy food from college. The trip itself was free but she should've been aware of travel costs if she couldn't afford it or at least made sure to ask her parents if they could lend her some money/top up her card beforehand.
    via bowieapple
  • birthday-caird-pish I would say NTA but I personally wouldn't have left my 16yo female friend to travel alone. Especially in London. Being late to college isn't that big of a deal. I totally get the frustration of it being a regular occurrence. Time keeping is my biggest pet peeve.
    via birthday-caird-pish
  • OP bowieapple Yeah I agree which is why we agreed to travel together in the first place, but any scenario would've left one of us alone in London as there was another girl going who had to take a different train and we met her at the station to get to the trip together, so if we waited for A we would've been late and left the other girl by herself for at least 30 mins. It's horrible trying to get around as a young woman but if you're anxious about travelling you should be get to where you need t
    via bowieapple
  • BreqsCousin INFO Is going into London something you do regularly? This is probably an NTA. If you were all competent adults out definitely would be. Her desire for company doesn't outweigh your desire to not be late. If she'd never been before and was nervous about going on her own and worried she might not find her way, then it could maybe be an ESH.
    via BreqsCousin
  • OP bowieapple We all live fairly close to London (about 1 hour on a single train) and I go there at least a couple times a year but only 2 times (this and another trip recently) I haven't gone with family. I'm not entirely sure about A as we only became friends this year but I would assume she's been before with others, same as me. We were given clear directions and a map by our teacher and his work number to contact him if we needed any help getting there but I still totally understand her anxi
    via bowieapple
  • DJ1952 The only way to deal with the chronically late is to make them suffer the consequences of their tardiness. If you had waited for her, you all would have been late. By keeping to the schedule and leaving her behind, you've set a boundary. Keep enforcing that boundary and she'll either change her habits or her friends. Either way, you're ahead of the game.
    via DJ1952
  • EloquentMango It sounds like you did your part to arrive on time, and to check in with A along the way. You aren't A's parent or babysitter, and A was clearly fully aware of the expectations. ΝΤΑ
    via EloquentMango
  • Physical-Bear2156 NTA. Your friend has had a learning experience. One that had relatively gentle consequences. She needs to turn up on time and not expect her friends to miss trains because of her.
    via Physical-Bear2156

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friendship commute aita students London friends reddit story entitled too late late Reddit train money entitled people
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