Families are as complicated as any other large group of people, and almost no one is totally exempt from drama.
Affairs have a tendency to blow things apart, and that’s exactly what happened for this family.
The poster was very close to her uncle, who married her aunt when she was a toddler.
I (32f) used to have this really cool Uncle “Bill.”
He and my aunt “Sarah” (55f) started dating when I was 3 and we just had this type of instant bond. I loved this guy and he spoiled me to pieces.
It was a constant joke that the only reason he married my aunt was so I’d officially be his niece.
One night she witnessed her aunt’s affair partner but, being a child, didn’t realize she shouldn’t say anything to her uncle.
He was ecstatic when my aunt Sarah became pregnant because being a dad was something that he always wanted and adored my cousin “Julie” (24f) for the first few years of her life.
Then one day while Bill was out of town, I was sleeping over and in the middle of the night I woke up to use the bathroom and heard the backdoor slam (it had a very distinct sound) I was curious and peeked out the window from the room that I was in that was overlooking the backyard.
There was a man there talking to my aunt, laughing and hugging before we went away and the way that he left was not circling around to the front where the other cars would be going over the fence and I thought that was weird.
I went back to sleep and when I woke up Bill was back and without thinking I mentioned what I saw during breakfast.
Sarah tried playing it off but she was weird about it.
They got divorced and he learned that his daughter wasn’t actually his.
Unfortunately, that began an avalanche of mess and not only did it come out that Sarah was having an affair and Julie wasn’t his, but my mom and (maternal) grandparents knew and said nothing.
There was a divorce and while Bill let Sarah have the house he knew she couldn’t afford to maintain it, left the country (he had dual citizenship), and never tried to stay in contact with Julie.
It was heartbreaking, I missed Bill and I was sad for my cousin so I became a target for her and Sarah’s anger.
Her cousin and aunt blamed her for the divorce and treated her horribly her entire life.
In their mind, if I hadn’t of said anything Bill would’ve stayed.
I felt so guilty about it for years that I accepted their acts of wrath in silence but when Julie hacked my email to reject my offer of admissions to my dream college and two scholarships, I just couldn’t take it anymore.
There was a huge blowout between my mom and Sarah we’ve all been VLC since.
As a young adult, she reached out to her uncle on social media and they reconnected somewhat.
Fast forward 2020 and I happen to see Bill on social media and I shoot him a message.
Ironically, I was surprised that he responded and he asked about my life. We would talk for a while after that but never once brought up Julie or Sarah.
Bill never married and found out he couldn’t have bio kids and I knew that was tough for him.
After he passed and she attended the funeral in secret, she learned he had left her some money.
Unfortunately, Bill has passed away.
I went to the funeral in secret just to pay my respects and then went back home.
I expected nothing so I was surprised when Bill’s lawyer called and told me that I was left an inheritance.
Her family found out and thinks she should share it.
I was surprised and so was Bill’s ex girlfriend because she tracked me down on social media and put me on blast where all of my extended family could see and word got back to Sarah and Julie.
They think that I’m a witch and my grandparents want me to split it to keep the peace but I kinda don’t want to given how they treated me.
AITA?
Does Reddit think she owes her family anything because of her mistake?
The top comment says her family is delusional.
Her uncle knew exactly what he was doing.
Her aunt is obviously the one to blame.
All actions have consequences.
They’re all hoping the poster has had a happy enough life.
Her aunt and cousin are awful people.
Any anger should be aimed at the aunt and no one else.
If you thought that was an interesting story, check this one out about a man who created a points system for his inheritance, and a family friend ends up getting almost all of it.