If you find out that your friend or family member is being cheated on, or that their partner is at least trying to make advances toward someone else, would you tell them?
That's the predicament one woman found herself in when her stepsister's fiancé "propositioned" her at a party. Despite thinking she was doing the right thing by telling her what had happened, her honesty backfired when her stepsister accused her of "trying to ruin her relationship".
The 28-year-old woman explained that her stepsister, Jen, is currently engaged to a man named Pete, whom she met while working at her dad's company.
The woman said she also used to work at the same company and at the time, there was a running joke among her colleagues that Pete had a crush on her, although she insisted she didn't feel the same way, so nothing happened.
But when she recently attended an old co-worker's wedding, she was approached by Pete who tried to make a move on her before she made it clear she was "extremely uncomfortable" with the situation.
In a post on Reddit, she said: "I have a stepsister, Jen. Our parents got together when we were teenagers and Jen and I never clicked. I have nothing against her, we just aren't close.
"From the ages of 22-26, I worked at my stepdad's company, and Jen worked there too, and still does. While working there, I became friendly with a colleague, Pete. Everyone in the office would joke about Pete having a crush on me, but I never saw him like that and he never said anything so I didn't pay much attention to the possibility.
"However, when I started dating my now-husband, things got a bit awkward with Pete. When I quit my job, Pete and I didn't really stay in contact, but we followed each other on social media. It was a few months later that I saw on Pete's social media that he had started seeing Jen.
"Pete and Jen got engaged last year, and my stepdad agreed to pay for the wedding.
"A few weeks ago, an old colleague got married, so me, Jen, Pete, and my parents were all at the wedding. Pete was a little over-friendly at the reception, which I put down to alcohol. Later in the evening though, I was outside getting some air and Pete came out and basically propositioned me. I made it clear I was extremely uncomfortable and went back inside."
Not wanting to keep secrets from her stepsister, the woman called Jen and told her what Pete had done - but was accused of trying to sabotage their relationship.
At her stepsister's request, the woman agreed not to tell her parents anything about what had happened, but she failed to keep the scandal to herself as her parents had seen Pete follow her outside at the wedding reception.
Once her stepdad found out the truth, he pulled all funding from Jen's wedding and even refused to attend - leaving Jen fuming at her stepsister for "ruining her wedding".
The woman added: "A week ago I was talking to my parents, and they were talking about Jen's wedding. They were talking about Pete and my face must have changed because they immediately asked if something was wrong.
"After 20 minutes of them thinking the worst, I told them the truth. I begged them not to do anything about it since Jen and Pete worked it out, but my stepdad was livid. He called Jen and they had a huge fight, and he refused to pay for the wedding, or even attend.
"Jen has been calling and texting me and posting on social media about what a horrible person I am for ruining her wedding, and I've had messages from her friends telling me how awful it was for me to tell our parents after she asked me not to.
"I've tried explaining that letting them continue assuming would have led to worse consequences, but apparently I should have just been able to hide the whole thing somehow. My friends say I did nothing wrong, but my stepdad is now not speaking to Jen, and her whole wedding has been cancelled because of me, so I do feel guilty."
But commenters on the post were quick to assure the woman that it isn't her fault the wedding is cancelled, as the blame should lie solely with Pete.
One person said: "The wedding has not been cancelled because of you, it's been cancelled because of Pete. I doubt this is the first time Pete did this to a woman, and that's why your parents thought the worst of what happened. This was probably the last straw."
Meanwhile, another added: "The only bad actor here is Pete, who lacks basic respect and has no boundaries. Jen should break it off and thank you for telling her and her family."
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