He Protected His Own Property, but After His Sibling Wrecked Their Dad’s Bike, He Was Scapegoated for the Damage
Pexels/Reddit
Getting blamed for something that happened to a bike you never touched is the kind of family logic that’s hard to untangle, yet that’s exactly the position one man found himself in.
He’d said no to his sister’s request to borrow his own bike, intending to use it for a gym trip himself, and she’d taken the refusal in stride without any complaint at the time.
So when his sibling instead grabbed their dad’s older bike, it ended up breaking mid-ride.
When he came back, both his sister and dad were furious at him, insisting that if he had just agreed to lend his bike, this would have never happened.
Keep reading for the full story.
AITA for refusing to lend my bike to my sister, which led to her breaking my dad’s old bike?
My sister called me this morning asking if she could borrow my bike because she has none. She wanted to visit a friend who lives about a 10-minute bike ride or a 20-minute walk from our house.
At the time, I was planning on heading to the gym, so I told her no. She accepted it in the moment without making a big deal out of it.
But then his plans slightly changed.
Here is where it gets complicated: I didn’t end up leaving for the gym right away in that one hour time window. I got distracted on my phone and lost track of time. I still fully intended to go, but I just hadn’t left yet.
Since my sister doesn’t own a bike and I said no to mine, she decided to take an older bike belonging to our dad. During her ride, something broke on it.
Suddenly, he found all fingers were pointed at him.
About 70 minutes after her initial call, I walked into the room where my sister and dad were.
Both of them were furious with me, blaming me for what happened and demanding that I apologize. Their logic seems to be that if I had just let her borrow my bike, dad’s bike wouldn’t be damaged.
But he’s quick to defend his side of the story.
My argument is that I didn’t do anything wrong. I genuinely planned on going to the gym when she called, even if I got sidetracked on my phone.
Furthermore, even if I had left for the gym immediately, the exact same thing would have happened with dad’s bike anyway.
They are still mad at me, but I don’t feel like I’m at fault here.
AITA for saying no to lending my bike in the first place?
This family really needs to get back on the same page.
What did Reddit have to say?
It’s his bike, so he gets to decide where and when he uses it.
This father likely knew darn well his bike wasn’t in riding condition.
Accountability is a skill parents are supposed to ingrain in their children.
Sign up to get our BEST stories of the week straight to your inbox.
What was this dad really after?
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a mom who wants her daughter to help pay for her own cell phone, but her daughter says she can’t force her to get a job.
At the end of the day, these accusations are a stretch and deep down everyone involved knows it.
Saying no to lending your own bike doesn’t put you on the hook for whatever happens to a totally different bike your sister decided to grab instead.
Old bikes break, that’s just what old bikes do sometimes, and blaming the guy who was scrolling his phone on the couch is just plain asinine.
Blaming a broken bike on someone who never even touched was always going to be a tough sell.
Enjoyed this story?
Sign up to get our BEST stories of the week straight to your inbox.
