There’s a special kind of protectiveness that comes with watching someone hurt your spouse, even when it’s their own parents.

One husband turned his frustration with his mother-in-law’s comments into a 25-year-long game of minor, but very satisfying payback.

Read on for the full story!

Extremely petty (honestly couldn’t think of a title)

I love my mother-in-law, I really do.

I would do anything for her and my father-in-law if they needed it.

That being said, she’s got some real flaws.

However, over the many years I’ve known her, I’ve seen her say or do things that have hurt my wife’s feelings.

It’s never malicious, but my wife takes after her father, while her sister is more like their mother.

My MIL can be very particular, and every so often, she has made comments about how my wife deals with things, sometimes comparing her to how my SIL (do not get me started on her) would.

No matter how normal it might be, he still doesn’t like to see his wife hurting.

While a lot of it is unfortunately common mother-daughter dynamics, I have seen how much her behavior has upset my wife, and that is something I will not abide.

He’s over at their place quite a bit, and he’s noticed some more annoying behavior of his MIL’s.

I am their go-to for tech help.

I have no problem with that and, in fact, sometimes even enjoy it.

My MIL has a habit of hovering, which I do find annoying.

Early on, I thought it was so she could learn what I was doing, but it’s just something she does for some reason.

Which ended up being the key to his petty revenge.

So, I decided to take advantage of this.

The first time I swapped something out for her, I had her stick some of the older parts and leftover pieces in one of her desk drawers as a just-in-case, with the intention of taking it at a later point.

After the fifth time of her asking when I was going to come get the stuff, I knew I had her.

So he decided to do this every single time he would help them with their tech.

Every time I would go over and she would bring it up, I would let her know I wasn’t heading straight home (we live within walking distance) or would just “forget” when I left.

Each time I helped out with something, I’d add to the collection.

And this junk collection lives in his MIL’s head rent-free.

Almost every time I’m over there, she’ll bring it up, and I’ll make some excuse for not going through it.

Every so often, I’d take one or two of the wires and leave the rest.

This has been going on for over 25 years.

It’s nothing harmful, just a petty annoyance for her and something that amuses me.

He thinks his FIL may even be in on the joke.

There are times that I’ve gotten a look from my father-in-law that makes me think he knows exactly what I’m doing, but I cannot be sure.

However, if it amuses him as well – bonus.

It’s really the little things in life.

What did Reddit think?

This commenter is already brainstorming ways he can be even more petty against his MIL.

He should really tell his wife about this.

Non-tech savvy people are often easy targets.

This user hopes he doesn’t stop his little prank anytime soon.

A little harmless mischief is just what you need to lighten the tension, sometimes.

Who knew a tangled mess of wires could be so satisfying?

If you liked that post, check out this post about a rude customer who got exactly what they wanted in their pizza.