u/sananininini

I honestly don't know if I'm overreacting, but this situation has really upset me.

A friend called me crying because his father was unwell and asked me to remember him in my prayers and also manipulated me into giving him money as he was begging for it at nighttime when none of his friends was available. I told him I didn't have much money myself, but I still wanted to help. I ended up borrowing ₹700 from another friend in my own name and gave it to him.

I also personally helped him raise funds on Reddit, and almost ₹6,000 was raised through the fundraiser. I put effort into sharing it and asking people to help because I genuinely believed his situation was serious and wanted to support him.

He promised that the ₹700 I borrowed would be returned before July 25.

I wasn't constantly asking him for the money or pressuring him. When he stopped responding to my messages, I eventually contacted his sister just to explain the situation and ask what was going on.

Instead, I was shamed for even giving him the money in the first place. His mother also scolded me for calling. They refused to cooperate with me, and eventually they blocked me.

What hurts me isn't even the ₹700. It's the sheer audacity of treating me like I did something wrong after I went out of my way to help.

I think part of the reason I helped so much was because I had been in a similar position with my own father. I know what it's like to desperately want to help your parent and feel helpless. I lost my father after that, so when my friend was crying about his father, I genuinely sympathized with him.

I wasn't thinking about the money. I was thinking, "I've been through this. I know how horrible it feels, and I don't want someone else to feel helpless."

Now I feel like that empathy was used against me.

Was I wrong for helping him? And was it unreasonable for me to at least expect communication and basic respect after I borrowed money in my own name and helped raise almost ₹6,000 for him?