Blended families can be complicated, especially after the loss of a parent.

The following story involves a man whose mother remarried several years after his father died.

His mother’s new husband was pressuring him to treat him like a replacement dad.

He politely declined, but the new husband didn’t take it very well.

Read the full story below for all the details.

AITAH for not acting like my mom’s husband is my dad?

My dad died unexpectedly seven years ago when I was 19.

I was already out of the house and in college.

Now, I am 26. I am living with my fiancée in my parents’ house.

The house was gifted to me by my mom.

We are getting married next April.

This man is happy for her mom remarrying.

My mom got remarried last year. She married this dude named Shawn. She moved in with him.

He has three kids under 15. He was a widower. They are with him all the time now.

There is nothing wrong with the dude. He treats my mom great.

She is a smart, strong woman. She would call anyone’s crap out.

She loves him, which is good for them.

His mom’s new husband insisted that he act like his real son.

Now, being a dad is a really big part of his personality.

He only has girls. He wants to have a son.

They decided they are both too old to have a new baby.

So he wants me to act like his son.

He wants me to call him dad and pops and stuff.

He politely said no.

I politely said no. I told him my late dad will forever be my only dad.

I said I do not need anyone else.

He keeps insisting on it.

My mom says to just pretend he is my dad.

She says to call him that. She says I do not have to mean it.

To him, Shawn is just her mom’s husband.

I do not want to. He is just my mom’s husband.

It all blew over back at Christmas.

I went on a two-week holiday vacation with my fiancée’s family.

Her dad paid for everyone. He paid for me, too.

He refused to let me pay my way. He told me to shut up and come celebrate.

Shawn got upset.

My mom’s husband Shawn was mad.

He said I was disrespecting my family.

He said I missed out on both holidays. He said I celebrated them with others.

I told him my fiancée’s family is also my family.

I told him I was celebrating with family.

Shawn is now calling him ungrateful and disrespectful.

My mom is my actual family. She had no problem with me going away.

So I did not see the issue.

He lost it. He called me ungrateful and disrespectful.

He said I should be grateful. He said someone is offering to be my dad.

He said you cannot have enough family.

Now, he’s wondering if he was the jerk in this situation.

I told him my father-in-law is more of a father to me than him.

I said he is not forcing anything on me. I said he still loves me like a son.

That got him upset. He hung up on me.

Am I wrong here for not at least pretending this guy is my dad?

This is genuinely so weird and exhausting to deal with every single time I want to talk to or visit my mom.

Let’s read the responses of other people to this story.

Mom needs to step in.

Short and straightforward.

This person has some valid questions.

Finally, this man clearly has issues, says this user.

You can’t naturally force a father-and-son relationship if it doesn’t exist in the first place.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.