AITH for refusing to give up my childhood room to my half-sister after my dad left us?
My parents divorced when I was twelve. It was a messy split, and my father cut off almost all contact with me shortly after, starting a new family across the country. My mother worked two jobs to keep our home, and my small bedroom became my safe haven through years of anxiety and feeling abandoned.
Three months ago, my father reached out unexpectedly. He explained that his second marriage had ended, he was struggling financially, and he needed a place to stay while getting back on his feet. My mother, being far more forgiving than I could ever be, agreed to let him and his seven-year-old daughter move into our spare room temporarily.
Having him back in the house brought up a lot of buried pain, but I tried my best to keep the peace. However, last week, my dad approached me privately. He said the spare room was too cramped for his daughter and asked if I would swap rooms with her. My room is larger, gets natural light, and has all the sentimental items and art I’ve collected over years of coping with his absence. When I told him no, he accused me of being cold-hearted toward a child who had done nothing wrong to me.
During dinner yesterday, the issue came up again. My dad mentioned how "unwelcoming" I was being to my half-sister. I broke down and told him that he lost the right to ask me for sacrifices the day he walked out of my life, and that forcing me out of my only comfortable space in this house was unfair. My dad called me resentful, and even my mother later pulled me aside, saying that while she understands my hurt, making things difficult for a child isn't right and that I should just give up the room for a few months to keep peace in the home.
I feel overwhelmed with guilt because my half-sister is innocent in all of this, but part of me feels like my boundaries and emotional well-being are being completely ignored to comfort the man who abandoned me.
AITA for refusing to give up my room to my half-sister?