Roommates, thieves and stolen money. Oh my!
This is the story of how I became an (even more) broke college student.
Before transferring to APU, I went to Whitworth University for my freshman year of college. I was excited to finally move away from home and experience all the “college things,” especially having a roommate. But I never thought I would have to confront my roommate with an unfortunate accusation.
Most incoming freshmen live with someone new, and I was no exception. But not everyone has to be Nancy Drew to solve a thieving scandal.
I met my freshman roommate on move-in day. Let’s call her Emma. Everything went well in the beginning. We weren’t close friends, but we got along just fine. And we were both pretty quiet, so we didn’t talk all that much, but we were polite and didn’t have any issues –– until the middle of September.
I remember the exact day it happened. I was at choir when I got a text from Emma. She said that when she returned to our dorm, all of the money and gift cards in her wallet was stolen. She sounded distressed and worried, which caused me to anxiously anticipate the end of choir rehearsal so I could head back and check my wallet.
Sure enough, all of my cash was gone too. I immediately got nervous. Getting robbed the first month of freshman year was not on my to-do list, and now there was a thief on the loose.
Emma and I made a deal to double-check our door was locked at all times and to be more careful about where we put our stuff. For a couple of weeks, everything was fine and nothing had gone missing. My worries faded and I didn’t think about it anymore.
But the beginning of October came and things started disappearing again: earbuds, cash, gift cards, etc. Something wasn’t adding up. We always locked the door, and one of us was usually in the room when the other wasn’t.
After expressing my concerns to my mom, she gently suggested that it could be Emma. I had thought about this possibility before, but I had disregarded it immediately; Emma and I were on good terms. There was no way she was the one stealing.
Around my birthday, I got some extra cash. I was still anxious about the thief, so I never left my purse in our dorm unattended.
But one time, I arrived home and greeted Emma, who was sitting at her desk doing homework. I had plans to study with a friend, so I dropped off my purse and left. But for some reason, I had a weird feeling right when I closed the door. About five minutes later, I decided to run back really quick, just to check. I didn’t know what I was looking for, I just felt like I should.
Emma hadn’t left the room when I returned, and I decided to check my wallet, and sure enough, the cash was all gone.
My stomach sank. I could hardly believe it. Now I was certain that Emma was the one who was stealing my money.
It’s easy for me to give people the benefit of the doubt, but it was hard for me to come to terms with this situation. The person I was living with felt that it was okay to go through my stuff and steal it just because she felt like it.
I felt awful and set-up; this was a complete invasion of privacy, and all the trust that we had was gone. She even had the audacity to send that text in the beginning to place the blame on someone else.
My mom and I made a plan to catch her in the act. Using a powder I bought online, I dusted it over a $20 bill and placed it as bait inside my desk drawer. Once the powder comes into contact with water or sweat, it stains skin purple. Lo and behold, the money went missing, and Emma’s fingers were unmistakably purple.
Conflict is not my strong suit, but I knew I had to talk to her about the situation. And even when I did, even with the evidence from the powder, she denied it.
After meeting with my RA, we amicably decided she would move out. And in a completely unrelated incident, she ended up being expelled for illegal drug use. I guess I know now where my stolen money was going.
Living with a stranger brings all kinds of new experiences — some more exciting than others. If anything, it has taught me that it’s not too hard to be a good neighbor to those around you. Just don’t steal from your roommate. It’s that simple.