Have you ever had to deal with someone who just won’t respect your boundaries? Our protagonist here, a 36-year-old woman, has been trying to maintain no contact with her emotionally abusive parents for a year now. But someone in her life keeps giving them her new phone number! ️♀️ So, she decides to set up a trap to catch the sneaky snitch. Will she find the culprit, or will her plan backfire? Let’s dive into this tale of lies, deceit, and family drama!
Cutting Ties with Abusive Parents
The Four Mutuals ️♀️
The Lies Begin
The Trap is Set
Cousin Busted!
Mixed Reactions
Protecting Myself ️
A Cunning Plan to Catch the Rat
Our protagonist hatches a plan to catch the person who’s been leaking her contact info to her abusive parents. She tells four different lies to the four mutuals she’s still in touch with: her sister, aunt, childhood friend, and cousin. The lies range from having an affair to moving back to her hometown. In just three days, she receives a text from her mom, revealing the cousin as the rat! She then changes her number and cuts off contact with her cousin. While her aunt and childhood friend understand her actions, her sister is upset and feels insulted. Was our protagonist’s plan justified, or did she go too far to protect herself? Let’s see what the internet thinks of this situation…
RELATED STORIES
NTA comment imagines a wild alternate timeline, yikes
NTA for lies to catch parents, YTA for affair lie.
Sisterly love prevails amidst shocking lies. Apologize and move on.
Choosing to lie about an affair caused unnecessary emotional pain.
NTA comments show lack of empathy for protagonist’s dilemma
Reader questions author’s use of hurtful story, ESH verdict.
Apologize to your sister, protect yourself, and move forward
Lying to family: YTA! Lies have consequences
ESH, OP’s manipulative approach caused harm to sister, needs apology.
YTA called out for exposing sister, sparking discussion about trust.
Sister is hurt by suspicion, but hope for reconciliation.
NTA praised for ‘brilliant’ plan to catch the rat
Empathy concerns raised in response to lying behavior.
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Understanding NAH comment and empathy towards the sister’s feelings
Apologize to your sister and value her companionship
A harsh judgement on a manipulative behavior. Seek help.
Sibling loyalty or honesty? Navigating family secrets
Concerned commenter suggests therapy for questionable behavior.
Lying to protect oneself, but the impact matters more
Apologize to your sister for lying. YTA
YTA for lying, but ingenious. Emotional labor involved in support.
Admirable honesty, but questionable choice of lie for sister. Apologize.
Lying is not cool but finding the rat is satisfying
User questions the severity of lies with a touch of profanity.
Trust betrayed: Commenter doubts story, calls out emotional abuse.
Harsh comment accuses OP of being the abuser.
User calls out OP for being a narcissistic YTA
Betraying trust to catch one person? YTA strikes again
Apologize to your sister, Tyrion. Soft YTA
Red flags raised as commenter calls out OP’s behavior
Selective truths could have sufficed instead of shocking lies.
Being a victim of abuse doesn’t justify lying to family.
Sister calls out OP for setting up selfish hoops to jump through. YTA ♀️
Comparing people to rats is offensive, NAH in comments.
Gentle YTA. Playing games with family is insulting and unnecessary
Delivering lies and failing to apologize? YTA confirmed
Using a less disruptive lie would have been better. Soft YTA
Choosing between protecting oneself and trusting a loved one YTA
Lying to catch the rat? YTA and hurt your sister’s trust
User calls out OP for using a painful lie to test her sister’s trust, highlighting the irony and suggests acknowledging the hurt caused.
Trust issues, betrayal, and family drama.
YTA called out for unnecessarily lying to sister about affair
YTA for putting your sister in a tough spot
Protecting yourself doesn’t always come without hurting others.
The commenter sympathizes with the sister’s hurt feelings, but suggests alternative options
PTA admits to handling the situation poorly with multiple lies
Protecting yourself doesn’t always come easy. NAH understands, but sister hurt.
Using big picture and small details to judge the judgemental
Choosing lies wisely to avoid emotional burden. NTA.
Using burner phones could have been a better solution. YTA.
YTA’s comment sparks ethical debate about honesty in relationships.
Canary trap gone wrong? Commenter calls out poor execution.
Cheating lie caused unnecessary stress and potential relationship fallout. YTA.
Lying to protect yourself: N A H or YTA?
Lying to test trustworthiness isn’t worth damaging relationships. ☠️
Protecting oneself from toxic parents is tough but necessary. Empathy needed.
Protecting oneself from toxic family. NTA but sister upset
Emotions can override logic, but NTA for protecting yourself.
Testing trust: One person’s sad experience with family and friends.
Cleverly protected herself from boundary violator. NTA
Outing the cousin for giving your number to abusive parents: NTA
Breaking free from struggles, NTA for protecting oneself.
You did what you had to do to protect yourself!
Validating everyone’s feelings in a delicate family situation
Trust issues with sister after protecting self from toxic parents
Trying to catch a rat, but a lack of trust fuels fury
Protecting yourself from toxic parents is important. NTA
Sibling support and detective work against toxic parents.
Overcoming narcissistic abuse and helping others understand the struggle.
A technical approach to avoid lying to toxic parents.
Red flags in the narrator’s language and actions. Therapy recommended.
YTA for lying to your sister and breaking her trust
Trust betrayed by close ones, NTA seeks closure and apology.
Is revealing an affair unforgivable? Split opinions on judgement.
