It’s admirable to be nurturing and welcoming of others, but not at the expense of someone else’s happiness.
Especially if the happiness in question belongs to your own teenage child.
This woman took to Reddit to share her story.
I’m (40’s f) taking classes at a community college to work towards getting an associates. I’m in 2 of the same classes as Amelia (19f).
Amelia is a very sweet and smart girl but her family mistreats her.
She used to make less than minimum wage working close to 60 hours per week at her dad’s business then had to pay almost everything she made in rent.
Because of an unexpected cost, Amelia did not have enough money to pay rent.
Amelia needed to get her car’s oil changed and wasn’t able to make rent because of it.
She gave her parents what she had but they still kicked her out.
Amelia called me and asked if she cou3ld sleep on my couch until she figures things out.
Amelia showed up with very little.
I said yes and she got here a half hour later with nothing but her car, her phone, and the clothes on her back.
Apparently her parents didn’t let her go in to get her clothes.
Kindly, the woman took care of her.
I took her shopping to get some clothes, toiletries, and whatever she needed for school.
We set the guest room up for her and I told her she could stay as long as she needed.
The problem is I have 3 kids. 2 girls (2 and 4) with my current husband, and a son (16) with my ex.
The girls love Amelia and she’s a great help with them.
The woman’s son is not happy with a stranger living in the house.
My son does not like having another person in the house.
He doesn’t speak to her except to ask if she got a job yet or when she’s leaving.
He intentionally sabotages Amelia.
He also does things like, when it’s his turn to take out all of the trash in the house, he won’t get the trash from Amelia’s room.
Or if she’s watching tv in the living room he’ll go on the app and change the channel either to what he wants to watch or he’ll change it every few minutes to annoy her.
I’ve talked to him about his behavior and I’ve tried to punish him but every time I’ve tried he’s gone back to his dad.
When the mother confronted the father, he blamed her for not considering her son’s feelings.
I tried to talk to his dad about this but he says that this is my fault because I didn’t ask my son before taking Amelia in.
AITA for not asking him?
Reddit users were quick to take the child’s side
One person said it’s fair that the son is feeling resentment for not being considered in a major change.
Another reader said the woman is risking harming her relationship with her son for this girl.
This person suggested that the son probably feels rejected or put on the backburner again.
I feel bad for Amelia and her circumstances, but I don’t think it’s worth risking a relationship with your own child.
It seems like her ex feels the same.
If you liked that post, check out this story about a guy who was forced to sleep on the couch at his wife’s family’s house, so he went to a hotel instead.