While their house was being renovated, a woman and her fiancé chose to stay at the woman’s sister’s place. During their stay, the woman noticed the complete lack of support her pregnant sister received from her husband. Despite working over 40 hours a week, the pregnant sister also managed all the household chores alone. At Thanksgiving dinner, the woman decided it was time to teach her brother-in-law a lesson.
In November 2021, an anonymous woman posted a touching story on Reddit’s “AITA” forum. The 24-year-old woman shared a story about her 32-year-old sister and her 38-year-old husband, who exemplified weaponized incompetence.
Despite working full-time for over 40 hours a week, managing all household responsibilities, and caring for their four children—10-year-old daughter, 8-year-old son, 5-year-old son, and 3-year-old daughter—while pregnant, her sister’s husband did nothing to help.
The woman was shocked to see her sister wake up at 4 a.m., handle breakfast and chores, and get the kids ready for school while her husband stayed home, worked, and played video games after she picked the children up. Remarkably, the woman noted that her sister earned more than her husband.
What Happened When the Woman and Her Fiancé Stayed with Her Sister?
While their home was being renovated, the woman and her 26-year-old fiancé stayed at her sister’s place for six weeks. Since they worked from home, they could help, and their support made the woman’s sister feel happy and relieved.
The woman helped her sister with the kids, and her fiancé even drove her to doctor’s appointments. In contrast, the husband only acknowledged his parental role when his family was around, pretending to be a god-fearing and hardworking father of five.
Despite the woman’s sister wanting to stop having children after the last baby, her husband insisted on having more boys. The original poster worried not only for her sister but also for her children, especially as the oldest began to notice the situation and tried to help. However, OP’s sister, driven by pride, refused to let her child take on any responsibilities.
OP admitted she never got along with her brother-in-law, and his behavior had been consistent since the birth of his eight-year-old son. Despite discussing the option of leaving, her sister was resistant and feared her children would grow up in a broken home.
Her views on divorce differed from OP’s, as her experience with their parents’ divorce was very different. She believed her kids needed both parents together and was reluctant to consider the potential benefits of a divorce.
I Enlisted a Pretend Partner for Our Family Meal – It Became the Most Rewarding Choice of My Life
Family gatherings were the worst for Lara, especially since her sister, Emily, began to make fun of her love life, or lack thereof. Determined to sit through her father’s birthday dinner, Lara decides to hire a boyfriend for the night. Little did she know that a romantic comedy would play out.
I love my family, but family gatherings used to be a nightmare for me. Every single time we got together, my sister Emily would find some way or the other to poke fun at my single life.
Last Thanksgiving, she took it too far and even set a place at the table for my “imaginary boyfriend,” complete with a hand-drawn face on a napkin. Everyone around the table laughed while I forced a smile.
“It’s funny, Lara!” she would say whenever I brought up the incident.
It was anything but funny.
Now, my father’s birthday is coming up, and of course, it was to be celebrated with a family dinner.
“There’s no way I can sit through another one of those events with my family,” I told my friend, Kate, when we met for coffee.
“I’m telling you now, Emily probably has something up her sleeve already,” I grumbled.
“Then just hire someone out for the night!” Kate chuckled, adding sugar to her coffee.
“Hire a man?” I exclaimed.
“Yes! My sister did it through an agency. She didn’t want to go to her ex-boyfriend’s wedding by herself, so she found the agency. Look, it’s all above board and the guys do exactly what you need them to do.”
“It’s not… sleazy?” I asked, trying to think of a better word.
“No, Lara,” she giggled. “And you know my sister. She’s so prim and proper! She wouldn’t have gone ahead with it if she didn’t think that everything was legitimate.”
Which is how I ended up hiring a date to the family gathering. I found Jake through the same agency that Kate’s sister used. He was charming, easy to talk to, and seemed to understand exactly what I needed.
We met a few times before the dinner to get our story straight, because the last thing I wanted was Emily to get wind of something fishy.
“So, the story is that we met at a mutual friend’s party, hit it off over their dog, and have been dating for three months,” Jake said, grinning. “Sounds about right.”
“Look, any story involving myself and a dog are winners,” I replied, opening our Chinese takeout for dinner.
“And I’m an architect with a passion for cooking, right?” he confirmed.
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