I work in a small office. There are eight of us. There is no break room, just a small kitchenette with one fridge, a microwave, and a coffee maker. One of my coworkers, Nina, sometimes brings her son, Leo (12), in with her for the last hour of the day when his school ends early.
He usually sits in the conference room with headphones on and does homework. He is a quiet kid, so it has never been a big deal. A few months ago, I started bringing my own lunches because eating out every day was getting expensive. I keep things in the fridge like leftovers, yogurt, and drinks. It saves me money.
I started noticing my food was going faster than it should have. At first, I thought I was just forgetting what I had eaten. Then one day, I opened my lunch bag and the yogurt I had brought that morning was gone.
Later that afternoon, I saw Leo eating the same brand of yogurt at the conference table. It even had my name written on the lid in marker. I did not say anything at the time. Nina was busy, and it felt awkward to bring it up over a yogurt.
Over the next couple of weeks, it kept happening. Nothing major, just small items disappearing. Juice boxes, granola bars, and a leftover sandwich. It was always things that were easy to grab.
Last week, I finally said something to Nina. I told her I was not angry, but that Leo had been taking food from the fridge that belonged to me, and I asked that it not happen again.
She looked surprised and said she would talk to him. Since then, Leo has not touched my food. However, Nina has also stopped chatting with me much since I brought it up. There is no more small talk about random things or asking how my weekend was. Everything is polite but brief.
Nothing dramatic has happened, but I do feel the shift, and it does not feel good. I keep wondering if I should have just let it go, since it was not a lot of food and now things feel awkward. Now I am afraid I am seen as the “Karen.” AITA?
Here's what people had to say to OP:
MiddleMuscle8117 says:
NTA. I think Nina is simply a little embarrassed. I bet if you make a bit of an extra effort to strike up friendly conversation with her, showing her it wasn't a huge deal, things will return to normal.
Educational_Bar_1809 says:
NTA. Her kid was eating your food. He purposely got into your stuff and ate food with YOUR name on it. It's not like it was free lunch for everyone. We have lunch bandits at my work. You can write your name on it all you want but some people think whatever is in the breakroom is fair game. She shouldn't be all hurt about it. If her kid is hungry, she needs to bring snacks for him.
hoosiergirl1962 says:
Maybe it's just that she feels a bit embarrassed now and that's causing the awkwardness.
Chaoticgood790 says:
NTA he’s 12 not 2. Old enough to not take things that have people’s names on them. It’s a learning lesson. And if Nina is mad about it then shame on her. My guess is she was embarrassed.
What do you think?