[CiscoCodex]

I think the crux is in the wording. For me, being "in it together" means if you're struggling I'll struggle with you. The bookstore is losing business and the landlord, in the spirit of helping out, should lose business as well.

Maybe OP is struggling making their own payments because they don't have the rent money. But ultimately it seems the bookstore ends up with the rough end of the deal. The landlord will recover deferred rent, but the bookstore will not get their lost business back.

To clarify, I applaud OP for doing something that eases the stress of payment. But I think the wording could have been better.

[oulu2006]

Yes, to me being "in it together" means suffering is shared.

I said it was a nice gesture, and it is, but to me in the long run (assuming the book store doesn't go out of business) you still get your pound of flesh, you just get it a bit later, that's not really suffering together.