When a friend you’ve known for 14 years calls you crying about a family emergency, your first instinct would probably be to help.
But according to a story shared on Threads, one woman was left feeling betrayed after lending her best friend RM3,000, only to later discover that the supposed hospital emergency allegedly never happened.
The story was posted by @faridmajidpg, who credited “Realiti Kehidupan” at the end of the thread.
Handed over her Raya savings
According to the account, the woman received a tearful voice note from her best friend claiming that her mother had been admitted to hospital and needed a scan.
The friend allegedly said she did not have enough money to pay for it.
The pair had known each other since their school days, and the friend had even been her wedding attendant.
Despite earning just RM2,600 a month, the woman transferred RM3,000 at around 11.40pm without thinking twice.
It was money she had been setting aside for Raya, saving RM250 whenever her salary came in.
After sending over a screenshot of the transfer, she reassured her friend that her mother was more important.
Her friend thanked her and allegedly promised to repay RM500 a month.
Beach photos appeared a week later
A week after the transfer, the woman came across photos of her friend at the beach, holding a new nude-coloured handbag.
The caption read: “Healing dulu.” “Healing first“
Although she felt uneasy, she tried to give her friend the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps her mother had been discharged, and she needed a break after caring for her.
However, a month passed without any repayment.
When the woman checked in and asked how her friend’s mother was doing, her message was allegedly left on read for two days.
The friend eventually replied, asking her to be patient and suggesting that she did not trust her.
By the second month, the woman claimed she still had not received a single ringgit.
Her friend also allegedly hid her photos from her, although mutual friends could still see posts of her eating at cafés.
When her husband asked whether the Raya savings had been repaid, she stayed silent, too embarrassed to explain.
Ran into her friend’s mum at the market
The situation took a turn when the woman visited a morning market one Sunday.
There, she spotted her friend’s mother chatting and bargaining over kangkung at a vegetable stall.
Having known her since their school days, the woman greeted and hugged her before saying how relieved she was that she had been discharged.
But the mother’s response caught her off guard.
According to the account, she said she was well and had never been admitted to hospital. She then asked whether her daughter had mentioned going on holiday, adding that she had even brought home some kerepek.
The woman smiled, nodded and walked back to her car.
She then sat inside for 20 minutes without starting the engine.
For her, the most painful part was not just the money. It was the allegation that her best friend had used her own mother as an excuse to borrow it.
Others shared their own experiences with unpaid loans
The post prompted several users to share why they had become cautious about lending money to friends.
One commenter said they were willing to help in other ways but avoided lending money or possessions, fearing it could end a friendship.
Another claimed that a loan which was supposed to last just two months had dragged into its fourth year. They added that whenever they asked for repayment, they were accused of being impatient.
A third commenter said they had been trying to recover a loan since 2017, but repeated promises and excuses had left them close to giving up.
