i ate the cookie

so i had this friend who was staying at my place for a couple of weeks. we have an arrangement where they're like my little and i'm kind of their daddy, but its mostly just in name because it doesn't really get physical or anything. anyway, there's this big jar of cookies on the counter that i bought to keep us going until groceries arrive which is still a week away cuz idk why else we'd be so low. so my friend knows they're not supposed to eat them without asking me first, but today when i came back from work they were all gone. and it's hard because this person was in such an emotional place earlier today where it felt really wrong to get mad at them. but then i started thinking about how unfair it is that im supposed to wait a week for new food while there's nothing left of what i bought. so we had this talk and i could see they were upset too, feeling bad like they knew it was the wrong thing but also just needed something in their stomach. so now i don't know if i should make them write me an apology note or some kind of punishment for breaking the rule even though they felt so awful already. i guess what i'm trying to figure out is whether i can be lenient and still have this work, or am i just being a pushover? like how do you balance caring for someone while also holding them accountable for rules. it feels weird making demands but then being all understanding when they mess up. now im stuck in my head over what to do.