There are few things more devastating than finding out your partner cheated on you. It doesn't matter who the other person is, but it can be particularly hurtful if it is someone you know. If it's a family member, it can easily change the family dynamic forever. It's very hard to trust someone again if they've tried to take away someone you love.
A woman recently found out her boyfriend was cheating on her with her stepsister, and instead of handling it between the three of them, she went straight to social media. She felt scorned and decided to air the family's dirty laundry for the world to see, but then she felt a tad guilty and asked Reddit's AITA forum for advice.
More from CafeMom: My Ex Cheated With My Sister, Now They're Mad I Didn't Invite Them to My Pregnancy Reveal
No one saw this coming.
Well, at least the original poster didn't. OP and her boyfriend, Jake, have been dating for a few years, and she really thought he was the one. OP's mom remarried about six months ago and her new husband brought a daughter, Laura, into the family. Even though OP and Laura didn't grow up together, they've become close, like sisters, and spend a lot of time together.
"Everything seemed fine until a few weeks ago. I noticed Jake acting strangely," she wrote. "He was more secretive with his phone and started coming up with excuses to not hang out as much. I chalked it up to stress from work at first. Then, last week, I was at my mom's house for a family dinner. Laura wasn't feeling well and ended up leaving the table to lie down.
"My mom asked me to check on her, so I went to her room. That's when I saw Jake's jacket on her chair," she continued. "My heart sank, but I didn't want to jump to conclusions."
It was more than just a secret affair.
Not only were Jake and Laura seeing each other behind OP's back, but Laura was also pregnant with his child. When OP found out, she was beside herself. Laura and Jake swore they never meant for anything to happen, but OP wasn't buying it. Instead of keeping it to herself, she admitted she went to social media to share the news.
"In my anger, I exposed everything on social media. I posted about their affair and the pregnancy, tagging them both. The fallout has been massive," she wrote. "My friends and family are in shock, and Jake and Laura are being shunned and harassed online. They're begging me to take the posts down, saying I've ruined their lives. My mom thinks I went too far and should have handled it privately."
Is she wrong for what she did?
Redditors think this affair was no accident.
Even though Laura said she didn't mean to hurt OP, this affair went on for a while.
Someone pointed out, "A 2 months affair and a pregnancy don't count as a mistake."
"'I didn't mean for it to happen…' kills me every time. If she really meant it, she wouldn't have slept with him," another person agreed. "I'm not saying the fault is all hers but the sister is the one to say she didn't mean for it to happen."
Airing the dirty laundry seemed justified.
Many Redditors agreed with OP.
"No, you're not the AH. Their betrayal was massive, and the pain and anger you're feeling is understandable," one person wrote. "While exposing them publicly might have been extreme, it's not uncommon for people to react strongly in such situations. It's up to you whether you want to take down the posts, but don't let them guilt you into doing so if you're not ready."
This person agreed, commenting, "NTA. They did something terrible but try to blame you for talking about it. It's really not difficult to stay faithful."
More from CafeMom: 'That Little Weasel' — I Caught My Ex-Husband Cheating Using the Fitness App Strava
There was also concern about OP's mom.
Redditors overwhelmingly agreed that OP was not a jerk, but they worried about her mom's motives.
As this person wrote, "NTA. I'm all in for exposing cheaters and their AP. Stops them from twisting the story making themselves the victim. Also – you need to have a serious talk with your mom.
"She should be on your side completely," the person continued. "Laura's been her step daughter for literally 6 months. It should be no question whose side she should be on. Especially when you are the person being betrayed."
These stories are based on posts found on Reddit. Reddit is a user-generated social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website where registered members submit content to the site and can up- or down-vote the content. The accuracy and authenticity of each story cannot be confirmed by our staff.
