Last weekend, I went to my best friend’s birthday dinner at a restaurant outside the city. It was a small but important gathering—one of those places where you need reservations months in advance, and everyone had dressed up. He’d been planning it for a long time, and I knew it meant a lot to him that I came.

About halfway through the dinner, my girlfriend called me. She sounded upset and said she’d gotten some bad family news. She asked if I could come home because she didn’t want to be alone. I told her I was at the dinner, and it would be hard to leave, but I’d head back as soon as I could. She said, “Alright, I get it,” but I could tell she wasn’t happy.

I stayed for dessert and the toast my friend had prepared, then left soon after. By the time I got home, my girlfriend was hurt and said I should have come home right away. I tried to explain that it felt wrong to leave in the middle of an important night for my best friend, especially since it wasn’t an emergency. She says I prioritized the wrong person, and things have been tense ever since.

AITAH?