A post has gone viral on Reddit after a man shared how his sister reacted to finding out he and his husband would be adopting their late friend's child.
Redditor u/Acceptable-Action410 wrote about the high-tension encounter on the subreddit "Am I The A**hole" in a post that has been voted on over 10,000 times.
The Redditor explained that his sister and her husband have been struggling with infertility for some time and recently decided to pursue adoption. He said while he can't imagine his sister's pain and sympathized with the couple, the stress of the situation put a strain on the siblings' relationship.
The Redditor shared that after the recent and unexpected death of two close friends he and his husband decided to adopt their surviving son who is less than 2-years-old.
"We're still grieving, which lowers our contact with a lot of people, including my sister and BIL. Our main concern right now is ourselves and Pete, whose custody has come to us because we're both his godparents, actively engaged in Pete's life since his birth, and because Mason and Kate have neither left a Will nor have immediate living relatives who can take him in," the Redditor wrote.
He said that though he and his husband had not previously planned on being parents they have started the adoption process and informed their friends and family. His sister was less than thrilled.
Infertility is defined by the inability to get pregnant after one year of trying (or six months if a woman is 35 or older), according to the Office on Women's Health. The term can also apply to people who can get pregnant but are unable to stay pregnant.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among heterosexual women aged 15 to 49 years with no prior births, about 1 in 5 are unable to get pregnant after one year of trying. Within that group, about 1 in 4 have difficulty getting pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term which is referred to as impaired fecundity.
The Redditor wrote that while he expected some "heated texts" from his sister and brother-in-law when they found out, he did not expect the events that would unfold.
"I didn't expect them to turn up on our doorstep, crying about how 'unfair' it is that we were given everything they wanted, and how we didn't deserve to be parents because we didn't go through what they had to," he wrote. "I've never seen my husband so angry before. He's usually very mild and gentle, but recent events have stretched our patience to the limits."
He said before kicking his sister and her husband off of his porch he left her with this message: "that since our pain inconveniences her so much, I won't have her around me and my family at all anymore."
Commenters were taken aback at his sister's response to the adoption and backed the Redditor for choosing the child's life "BEFORE the future" they had envisioned, as one commenter put it.
"I'm sorry but that's just disgusting behavior from your sister. You got everything you wanted??? Your close friends DIED and you have to go through an unexpected adoption for their son who is now orphaned. I know she's stressed but that's just horrible what she said honestly," one commenter wrote.
"NTA. You opened your hearts and your home to a little boy who needed you, and your sister has the GALL to make it all about her? [F**K] no. Pete lost both his parents. You want unfair? THAT is unfair," wrote another.
The Redditor responded to various comments sharing a bit more about his state of mind since the blow-up.
"NTA," one commenter wrote. "The fact that you already expected to get some heat from them says a lot about who they are as people. Some people are so caught up in their own narratives, it's ridiculous."
The Redditor responded, writing: "It's like I can't win with her. When I told her we don't plan on having children until later, she's angry because I'm wasting my time. Now I'm going to have one through a tragedy I really, really would rather never happen, and she's still angry because it's unfair."
Newsweek reached out to u/Acceptable-Action410 for comment.
