📝 AITAH, for not giving my boyfriend space when he asked for alone time?

By OkIndividual4420 • Score: 0 • April 6, 2025 10:28 PM


So, I (20f) and my boyfriend (23m) had a rough couple of days. We have been together for a little over a year and a half, and both live with our parents but were planning on moving in together around summer. About three days ago, he came to my house around midnight. He had worked all day and went to the gym after his shift to relieve stress. He works a very high-stress job, which is not uncommon, although he has had many more stressful days in the past couple of months. When he finally got to my house, he told me his coworker/friend had gotten into an accident and was in the hospital. I could tell he was stressed, and I offered to rub his back to help him get some sleep. he then said to me that over the past couple of months, his mental health has been drastically decreasing. He said that he needs alone time and some help to feel better. I started crying at this point because, from the way he was talking, I thought he was breaking up with me. He then clarified he wasn't breaking up with me, but the waterworks had already started. So I asked him what he meant by alone time, and he kept saying, I don't know. That stressed me out because I wasn't sure if he meant just seeing each other less or not at all or completely NC. I asked him what was happening, and he said everything came bubbling over once he heard about his coworker. It took about an hour of going in circles, and by alone time, he meant no seeing each other. he still never really clarified how long or what kind of help he was going to get (I assume he meant therapy). I kept asking why he had to cut me out to get help and why I wasnt able to help him or at least be around. I basically begged him not to do this (we have pretty much seen each other every day possible since we met). His only reason for doing this that he gave me was that he didn't want to get mad at me since he didn't feel in control of his emotions. After about 2 hours of the same conversation, he left, and I still felt lost, confused, and in the dark about everything. I texted him later that night asking about his coworker, and he seemed annoyed with me but said he hadn't heard anything. Fast forward to the next day, I called him around noon, wanting to try to have a better conversation with maybe fewer emotions, but I ended up starting to cry immediately. He kept saying I was just making everything worse. I texted him later that night and asked how he felt, but he didn't respond. We also have always shared locations, so seeing him doing things made me feel kinda better just knowing he's okay. Then, around midnight, I went to check it one more time before I went to sleep, and he turned it off, which he had never done before. when I woke up, I noticed he had called me in the middle of the night (he had been working a night shift that night). so I texted asking if he had meant to, and he didn't respond. I was finally over being ignored and unable to check his location since his job, as I mentioned, is stressful and dangerous. Then, around 10, I started texting him, begging him to have a conversation and calling. he finally sent a text saying he had had a horrible night at work the night before, and something I knew would've messed with him badly had happened. I apologized and said I couldn't imagine what he was going through but asked if he could please talk to me. I will admit I completely blew up his phone since he wasnt responding anymore. after about 10 calls and 10 texts, he answered quite pissed off. he said he was at the gym and that I had 0 respect for what he wanted or needed. He also told me he turned off his location to keep what happened the previous night under wraps, but I don't believe that because he's dealt with more sensitive things and left his location on. Although I could imagine what I was doing was annoying, I believe I still deserve a conversation about everything because this doesn't just affect him. The conversation was short since he was at the gym, but I asked if he could please call me back when he left, and he said he would and just hung up without even saying I love you. As you could've guessed, he never called back. I texted about an hour and a half later, saying I'm assuming you aren't calling me back, but could you at least turn on your location so I know you're safe. he still hasn't turned his location on, and I sent one final text this morning. "I didn't appreciate you telling me you would call me back and then didn't. we seriously need to have a conversation at some point today. I made it clear at the beginning that I need communication, and I feel like we've done a pretty good job with it, but this isn't. You need to call me at some point. If not, I'll just keep calling like last night. I need a conversation." I might've been nicer in this text, but I am so aggravated and upset, and I didn't know what else to do to get his attention. he still hasn't called me, and I don't know what to do. So, AITAH for not giving my boyfriend space when he asked for alone time? I'm sorry for rambling. There was just a lot, and I apologize if I did anything wrong. This is my first time posting.

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