We’ve all been there. You try to be a decent human being by pointing a struggling classmate toward a study guide, and suddenly you feel like you’re the getaway driver in a high-stakes bank heist. Your heart races, you check your rearview mirror, and you start wondering if the FBI (or in this case, the Dean) is about to kick down your door. Here’s the thing: being nice isn’t a crime, but guilt is a heavy backpack to carry.
The Good Stuff
- Pointing at the library isn’t smuggling contraband
Take a deep breath. You didn’t hand her the answers on a silver platter; you handed her a map. If someone uses a map to rob a bank, you don’t go to jail for selling them the map at the gas station. You helped the person, but you didn’t help with the cheating. There is a massive, neon-lit difference between sharing a helpful resource and acting as an academic proxy for a lazy soul.
Ghost her like she’s a bad Tinder date If she treats a makeup exam like a covert mission in Mission: Impossible, she’s going to treat your reputation like collateral damage. You don’t need that energy in your life. Stop replying, stop making eye contact, and definitely stop trying to save her from herself. She created the mess; she can lie in it.
If you have to move seats, make it a production
She sits next to you? You get up. Don’t just shuffle over like a timid shrimp; channel your inner drama queen. Grab your bag with purpose, sigh loudly, and relocate to the front row like you’re escaping a burning building. Make it so awkward she’ll be too embarrassed to follow. It’s not rude; it’s self-preservation.