Context: when I was 23 I started attending a school for the job I wanted. I generally kept my distance from my classmates while still being friendly, mostly because I was already working in the field - and while some of them didn't like that, others tried too hard to be my friend to get some benefit from it. However, there was one girl in particular with whom I had bonded: she had been very nice to me since day one, and we had seen each other a couple of times outside of school due to common interests. Nothing so deep but we got along pleasantly.

One morning I arrived pretty late for class, rushed to place my bag next to everyone else's, and went straight to practice. At the time I always carried a very powerful pepper spray with me, having been attacked many years before. After about half an hour, we heard a loud bang and we all started coughing: there was a big red stain on the wall and nobody was understanding what was going on. I immediately recognised the smell and, not thinking it could be mine, I altered everybody and opened all the class window with the teacher. As I turn around in this 10-second-panic, I saw the girl I had bonded with holding MY spray in her hands, petrified : my bag on the floor, and all my things scattered around.

We moved to the next classroom to understand what had happened: I immediately admitted the spray was mine and that it was very strong, apologizing to everyone for not having closed the bag properly and not having said I was bringing it with me everyday : a discussion started. Some were angry and asked why I was carrying such a dangerous object with me - I explained that I had one with me since I was 14 due to a SA attempt, and that if they wanted to call the police I would have taken full responsibility for what happened. My classmate - the girl I bonded with- remained silent through all that, not only not apologizing for having taken my things, not even admitting she did anything. She doubles the accusation joining the discussion. I ask her why it was in her hands and she fired a shot. A few people noticed alongside with me and asked her for explanations. She started shaking and said that, trying to take her bag, she had dropped mine on the floor: since it was half open (because in the rush of the delay I had not closed it properly fck me) everything inside had all fallen to the floor. She had seen the spray and had thought it was a PERFUME, and had decided to try it (even though she did not know whose bag it was). Thank God she had not sprayed it on herself and had (to this day I do not know how) hit the wall. She then started crying and blaming me.

I was BEYOND furious. I saw her for who she was: acting all friendly beforehand, sweet talking to me in every given occasion, then coming up like this - trying to throw s**t at me without even apologizing or taking responsibility for having touched something that wasn't hers. One of the many who tried to befriend me to have work benefits (and I was literally nobody in the field bros💀I was just 4-5 steps forwards to an average student)

At that point, some of our classmates pointed out they also carried a spray, and that a girl has the right to do so without having to say it out loud. That I may have closed my bag badly, but it wasn't my fault as there were no children or “unreliable” people in there: the situation reverses and everyone, including the teacher, attacks her. She tried to fight back but lost her temper and continued crying even more and playing the victim. The “bossiest” girl in our class told her to put her hands up her a** and be ashamed, and that was the end of the discussion. I stayed calm and silent and didn’t insult her or say anything, but I was raging: not for the gesture itself, even if childish and senseless, but for trying to throw everything on me.

She apologized several times and tried to explain herself PRIVATELY and AFTERWARDS, reaching out for me during that year, but I never forgave her. Seven years after this episode I’m still mad as hell when I think about that - and normally I’m a very forgetful person. We work in the same city but I NEVER suggested her name for a single job: I didn’t sabotaged her by speaking ill of her or mentioning the episode, but she’s the only colleague I don’t want to have ANYTHING to do with. AITAH for that and for what happened?

I know that if someone had gotten seriously hurt, the legal blame would have gone to me.