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The original was posted on /r/tifu by /u/ContributionGreen862 on 2026-07-15 18:03:14+00:00.
Background: I recently graduated from a large university in Michigan. Each summer, our school holds a large festival that many students, including alumni, use as a chance to get together after the school year ends. The lease for my apartment ends in about two weeks, so last weekend my two roommates and I made what I believed would be our last trip to the apartment before moving out.
To keep things simple, my two roommates, Daniel and Steve, and I are all part of the same friend group. However, while Daniel and I are fairly close, I’ll admit that my relationship with Steve became somewhat contentious toward the end of the year.
When I woke up on a hungover Sunday morning, I was ready to get all of my stuff out of the apartment so I could leave. Both Daniel and Steve had flown to a different city that morning, and with the doors to both of their rooms locked, I assumed they had both turned in their keys and moved out of the apartment for good (this was indeed the case with Daniel, though, as I’ll explain, I never verified this with Steve). Excluding some pots and pans that I had left in the kitchen, everything was gone from the apartment except for a handful of cleaning supplies, including a vacuum, an iron, trash bags, and a few other miscellaneous items. Believing that Steve had left these things for Daniel and me to use while cleaning the apartment, I packed up my remaining belongings and threw everything else away.
The next day, Steve was texting Daniel and me about an unrelated dispute regarding the condition and cleanliness of our apartment before the move-out inspection. He then mentioned that he would be returning in the next several days to finish cleaning and collect his belongings. I instantly realized my mistake and tried to call him. However, after about 24 hours of unsuccessfully trying to reach him by phone, I sent him a text explaining what had happened and that I would reimburse him.
To say that he was upset would be an understatement. He was incredibly angry and insisted that I pay him $400 to cover the cost of everything I had thrown away. I paid him immediately, but he remained extremely upset. Although this relationship is beyond salvageable in my estimation, I figured I’d share the story anyway.
While this situation was obviously my fault and entirely preventable, my two biggest regrets are: 1) not sending him a quick text to verify that he had actually moved out, and 2) not realizing how expensive vacuum cleaners can be.
TL;DR: I assumed my roommate had already moved out, threw away what I thought were leftover cleaning supplies, and accidentally tossed his $400 vacuum.