July 24, 2025 at 11:35 pm

His Daughter Broke His Stepson’s Expensive Headphones, So He Said She Has To Pay To Replace The Headphones

by Heide Lazaro

Black headphones on a gray background

Unsplash/Reddit

Teenagers need to learn about responsibility and accountability.

If your had a teenager who broke something that belonged to another teen, would you make them pay for a replacement, or would you think that an apology was enough?

This man has a teenage daughter who broke his stepson’s headphones.

His stepson’s dad offered to replace the headphones, but he insisted that his daughter should pay for them to teach her a lesson.

Was that fair? Read the full story below to decide.

AITA for taking unneccesary money out of my daughter’s pocket?

Basically, I have a daughter, Emily (16F), from a previous marriage.

My wife, Sasha, has a son the same age, Mark (16M).

Mark doesn’t stay with us that often and prefers to stay with his biological dad.

That being said, when he is here, I find Mark to be a pretty good kid. He is polite and respectful.

This man’s stepson, Mark, was staying with them for awhile.

His dad decided to take a trip for work in the last few weeks of school, so Mark’s here for a bit.

He’s out of the house most of the time, and doesn’t take up much space.

He does get kind of grumpy when there’s too much going on around him.

Mark’s favorite thing is his expensive headphones.

He especially doesn’t like noise, but for that, his favourite thing are these expensive noise-cancelling headphones.

He almost always has it with him. It was a present from his dad.

Emily’s school has already finished, so she’s also home.

Emily kept going through Mark’s stuff.

Here’s the problem.

The room Mark is in, sometimes has random items put in when he’s not here, and therefore, Emily seems to think it’s fair game to go through his stuff.

I’ve told her to stop, but Sasha hasn’t been taking it seriously. She’s saying that most of Mark’s stuff is easy to replace.

She accidentally broke Mark’s headphones.

The big problem happened when Mark accidentally left his headphones in his room, and Emily accidentally snapped them.

Mark found out when he came home from school and flipped. He shouted at her, saying she was “spoilt without anything to back it up.”

He said it loud enough that my wife and I heard it from the other room.

He told Emily to pay for it, even though she didn’t have to.

Sasha wanted me to calm things down, which I did, but I also told Emily she’s replacing them.

Mark’s dad offered to have someone get him a new pair immediately. He said it wasn’t a problem.

I said Emily would pay him back, and I’m sticking with it.

Emily and his wife didn’t think it was fair.

Emily and Sasha think that’s unfair since Mark’s dad can afford to buy 10 more.

But I don’t think you get to break someone’s stuff and not pay for it. Those aren’t the values I was raised with or what I want for my daughter.

That being said, I do realise, in this case, it’s kind of unnecessary, and there may be better ways for her to make it up to him. AITA?

It’s great that he wants to teach his daughter there are consequences for her actions.

Let’s check out the comments of other people on Reddit.

This user shares their personal thoughts.

Screenshot 2025 07 03 at 11.04.18 PM His Daughter Broke His Stepsons Expensive Headphones, So He Said She Has To Pay To Replace The Headphones

This person makes a valid point.

Screenshot 2025 07 03 at 11.05.13 PM His Daughter Broke His Stepsons Expensive Headphones, So He Said She Has To Pay To Replace The Headphones

Emily should pay Mark back, says this person.

Screenshot 2025 07 03 at 11.06.00 PM His Daughter Broke His Stepsons Expensive Headphones, So He Said She Has To Pay To Replace The Headphones

This user shares their personal thoughts.

Screenshot 2025 07 03 at 11.06.55 PM His Daughter Broke His Stepsons Expensive Headphones, So He Said She Has To Pay To Replace The Headphones

And lastly, short and straightforward.

Screenshot 2025 07 03 at 11.07.46 PM His Daughter Broke His Stepsons Expensive Headphones, So He Said She Has To Pay To Replace The Headphones

Actions have consequences.

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.