Reddit Stories - UNEXPECTED Bond_ From Lost Love to FAMILY Unity Amidst TRAGEDY_

Episode Date: October 3, 2025

#redditstories #askreddit #aita #family #unity #tragedy #lostlove #unexpectedSummary:In a heartwarming tale of unexpected bond, lost love is rediscovered, leading to family unity amidst tragedy. This emotional journey showcases the power of love and connection in overcoming hardship and bringing people together.Tags:redditstories, askreddit, reddit, aita, tifu, family, unity, tragedy, lostlove, love, connection, heartwarming, emotional, journey, rediscovery, hardship, bonding, relationships, support, resilienceBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/reddit-stories--6237355/support.

I hope you enjoy this story. Former partner transformed into a companion and began connecting with my child after my spouse passed away. I lost my composure when he referred to my child as his little one, and now he has arrived and revealed something. His feelings. I, F-34, had been with my husband for over 12 years. We had our child when I was 31, and my husband 33.

Sadly, recently, 1.5 years ago, when my husband, My baby was around two years, my husband, the love of my life, died in a tragic accident. Careless driver hit his car on a foggy, slippery road. He died instantly in a crash. His death left me in shambles, only thing that kept me at least sane was our daughter. I couldn't believe that I lost him. He was my rock, my light, and I loved him dearly. In a way I still cannot believe that he's gone.

That's where my ex comes in. In about year after my husband's accident, he reached out to me to talk, to vet maybe. We separated long time ago, couple of years before I've met my husband. We didn't exactly stay friends but were on good terms, and spoke occasionally high, How are you kind of talk? So he reached out and offered to help as a friend. It was unexpected but I accepted because I really needed a friend and frankly I don't have a lot of close friends besides him.

He occasionally came over to our place, brought some good. gifts to my daughter and we talked over tea or a beer. It wasn't intimate. He had several casual relationships over the years, and I clearly told him that I'm not ready for any relationships after my husband, still not ready, I guess. So he came over once or twice a month, he was very sweet with my daughter, so I didn't see anything wrong with them bonding. But then my baby started calling my ex-papa. It annoyed me very much, but I didn't say anything, because she's a toddler how is she supposed to now any better. I tried gently explaining to her that my ex isn't Papa, but I doubt she understood. So I just started sending her to my or my husband's mom when my ex came over. In truth, I know

our baby won't remember her father, photos is all she'll have of him. And I don't want another man to take his place in her eyes. So everything was normal again. I noticed that my ex was visibly upset when I told him that my daughter isn't home. But I didn't think much of it. And last time is where I snapped. That's where I might be the awe, because I ended up screaming at my ex and probably should have handled it better. So when he was at our house and we played some video games and had couple of beers, my mother brought my daughter home early, she was very grumpy and wanted to go home. He stood up and told my daughter, Here's my baby, I missed you, and reached to hug her.

That's where I snapped at him. I told him angrily that he is in fact not her father, and that she is, She is my and my husband's baby and will never be his baby no matter how much he wants it. And if he wants to have a child, he still have plenty of chances with his girlfriend. He told me I was a real odd for saying such cruel things and left. My mother told me that I was kind of an asshole too and I acted like a child. So am I? Comments, commenter, nah.

I think you took some unresolved trauma out on him. And also that him calling your kid his baby was pretty clueless since he'd be. presumably will not be her father. He's more of an uncle, if we want to use family terms at all. I think you should apologize even though he was also wrong, assuming you want to be friends and have him in your kid's life. Hopefully he will understand that it is a sore subject for you right now and parts of it will obviously be a sore subject forever. Ah, thank you. I think you're right. I still take everything concerning my husband to heart and my ex's words hit very close to home. I don't think I was wrong in what I said to him, but I was wrong in the way I said it.

After thinking about it for some time, I think I do want him in my and my daughter's life. He is a very good friend and very supportive, especially in my time of need, so I shouldn't have lashed out at him. I think I'll try calling him to apologize and communicate my issues clearly. Maybe he didn't even mean anything by his words and just loves my baby and expressed it a bit clumsily. But I admit his words really triggered me in the moment. Commenter, nah. You are still heavily grieving the loss of your husband. You should, in my opinion, apologize to him and explain your thoughts.

He can accept the apology or not. If you are not currently in therapy, you should really consider it. I have a friend whose son's dad passed away when he was three. Same thing. Only pictures and basically no memories. Ah, thank you for you advice. I believe you're right, I should. should apologize and explain my feelings to him clearly. I didn't express my concerns earlier and

then exploded unnecessarily. I should set some clear boundaries with him, explain that I'm still hurting and don't want him to call my daughter his baby in any way. If he's okay with it, that'll be great. If not, then I won't have a choice than to stop speaking to him for my own sake. I am currently in therapy, it is helpful, but it's a long process. And sincerely sorry for your and her son. Commenter, since you have a baby, you will need to enact clear boundaries with him. It's possible that given you two's romantic history, he doesn't realize he's crossing lines. But once you let these boundaries be known, it's up to him to follow them and you to enforce them. Don't let him bully you. You're the mom and dad to your baby. Ah, you are right. My first priority is my

baby's well-being. And although some of my relatives say child, needs a father figure, I think that's a load of BS. If I meet a nice man, at least as great as my husband, then maybe. But it should be on my terms and not forced onto both on me and my baby. Commenter, if he only came back into your life because of the baby, I think there is something going on here. There are tons of bad people out there who insinuate themselves into single mom's lives to get access to the kids. Protect your daughter. You don't need your ex. You dumped him for a reason already. Ah, I'm not really sure if he has some ulterior motive about my baby.

Maybe he's too projecting some unresolved issues, maybe not. He's generally a good person and a good friend. But you're right. He was a terrible boyfriend. We were very young and our relationship was clearly toxic, but we've later talked and decided that we're much better friends than lovers. But it is clear to me now after posting and thinking about the matter that, firstly, should apologize for yelling, secondly, set some clear boundaries about him

and my baby. If he won't accept that, that's his right, but we won't speak anymore. Then commenter, NTA. And this seems to be some ploy on his part to get back with you and has extended to creating a relationship with your daughter. Up, I don't think he wants to get back with me, though I'm not completely sure. We did break up for a reason. We were young and stupid and our relationship was completely toxic. He is a good friend, though. Some time after the breakup, which was surprisingly calm, we talked and decided to stay in touch. We weren't close friends, but we were friendly. He was very supportive after my husband's death and helped me a lot. I won't deny there's a bit of nostalgia about the times we were together, but it's more of a

running joke now. We can say, do you remember when we were together so and so happened and we laugh. I in fact do not want him as a partner. He is terrible boyfriend and judging by his demeanor with his numerous girlfriends, that didn't change. He initially didn't express any interest in having children, but maybe he's projecting some of his own issues onto my daughter. Commenter, this whole situation is bizarre to me. I don't understand why you'd allow your ex this much access to your kid. I understand needing the support, but the situation is suspicious, NTA. In general, NTA. Op, thank you for your input. You are right, I believe I was wrong for introducing them at all.

I was a wreck and needed support, yes, but my priority should be my child. First year after my husband died, a lot of people came over to offer condolences and some help, my and my husband's family. My daughter was always by my side. She once called my husband's brother Papa, but they look so much alike. that it is understandable. And I kind of missed the fact that my ex's visits and gifts can be a problem. I was too late to understand that I need to set clear boundaries and it is inappropriate for them to bond if I do not want any relationship besides friendship with my ex. On the term Papa, thank you for your input. I didn't mention it in my post, but we are European

and term Papa is actually more common here. Maybe it wasn't even his intention and he did it subconsciously. I was in the wrong to scream and yell, but we definitely need to set some clear boundaries that this friendship is going to last. Update, first, I wanted to say thank you for everyone who offered condolences, advice, and criticisms. I appreciate it very much. I think a little context and explanation is due. My husband and I had a really tight friend group. We usually hung out at our place because we have sort of a playroom, with PS5, good PC, VR, board games and table. We are big fans of gaming in many ways. Sadly, our friends moved to different countries over the years one by one, and after my husband

died I was left with only one friend from the group nearby. But she's a young mother too and we can't hang out like before. We still speak but it's not been the same. So I wanted some familiarity when my ex appeared. I was vulnerable and allowed things to escalate too much. I desperately wanted to have a friend who shares similar interests with me and my husband. So I was blind to some red flags and my own wrong choices. Also, I never left my ex alone with my daughter for more than a couple of minutes.

I was wrong to introduce them in the first place. Now to the update itself, yesterday evening my ex came by unannounced and uninvited. I was a little worried, but, thankfully my friend. my husband's brother and his wife was at our house with their kids on a playdate. So I asked them to watch over the kids for some time and went to talk with my ex outside. He was drunk. A lot. He started talking and he said a lot.

In a nutshell he said that he will always care about me, that he suppressed some feelings for all this fifteen years and he just realized that he was a fool to let me go. I admit, I do care about him too, but not even remotely in a way I care about my husband. So I was a fool to hope we can be friends and have civil relationship without any implications. Our talk started getting heated and we argued, a lot of accusations were thrown. My bill came out of the house and brought our big overprotective dog with him. So I quickly apologized to my ex for leading him on and told him to move on and asked him to leave and never return. I was a bit worried that things can get violent, but he left without any protest.

He later posted long and vague post about being hurt and that love is shit, and he is better off alone, and tagged me and several of his other exes. Not sure how his GF may react to that, but it doesn't really matter anymore. I blocked him everywhere and hope he won't appear in our lives anymore. Also, I will update my security system as soon as possible just in case. Now on to the next story. Story 2 son bullied a girl with cancer, so I sold all his electronics and clothes. Then he came out as gay and said he was being bullied too.

Now he's sorry, got a job, and wants to make things right. I am 38 and I have a 15-year-old son who is going to be a sophomore after this school year is over. I gave birth to my son when I was 23 years of age. Unfortunately, my son's dad left when he was five and never came back. I have not heard from his dad in years. Recently my son has been getting trouble. Quite frankly, I am at my wits end. I'm at a loss.

My son made new friends that have been nothing but trouble. My son and his friends have shoplifted from stores, skipped school, and has been a smart ass. May 9th, my son bullied a girl who lost her hair. She is going through chemo. The girl was sitting in her seat and my son decided to, to rip her scarf off. Him and his friends said very mean things to her. The poor girl was already getting bullied and my son exacerbated. She was humiliated. I was called to the school. They brought my son and the girl to the office. I arrived there shortly after they called me.

The teacher and principal explained the situation. The mother of the girl he bullied was at the school as well. I asked the mother for her number. I gave her my number. I told her that if she needed anything to not hesitate to ask. My son was given two days of ISS for bullying. My son and I got home and I was furious. I lost my mind. I went into his room and took every electronic. I took his PS5, his MacBook, his iPhone 13. I took his name brand shoes, his name brand jackets, his Hollister jeans and his Nike shirts. I grounded him indefinitely. Three days later I sold his electronics at a very marked-down price. I got I bought my son Walmart clothes and goodwill shoes. He will not bully someone and get

away with it. I gave the money to the mother so she could buy her daughter a wig. The only thing my son has in his room is his bed, drawers, mirror, and his shelf of books. I even confiscated his art supplies. My family on my mother's side are not talking to me because of this. I know that it's been two weeks. I just feel like there was a possibility that I was too harsh. Edit, he is not allowed to leave the house at all. He's also not allowed to hang out with his friends. Comments, External underscore Expert underscore 269, you fucking hero. How else would he learn? He was cruel and hopefully this is a defining moment where he can become a kind, compassionate person. Looks like the relatives on your mother's side should go meet the mother and child with cancer

to understand the gravity of the situation. I don't think they understand how horrible this really was. Great job parenting. Oop, I just hope he learns from this. I have tried talking to him many times about this and it doesn't work. External underscore expert underscore 2069. Have you thought of therapy sessions? I was a total jerk as a teen. I'm not now. But damn I wish I could go back and slap myself. You've had the conversations you needed to take action. Perhaps therapy at this point is essential. Oop, definitely. He's going to therapy for sure. Byrony 88, NTA, you did exactly what you were supposed to do. You are parenting him. Good job. You need to lay it out plainly. to him exactly what he did so he can see the full extent of his own assholery.

Ask him how it is at all funny to humiliate a girl fighting for her life. Tell him that she lost her hair literally trying to stay alive and cure the disease trying to kill her, and ask him how he found that funny. Tell him it was a cowardly thing to do. Picking on a girl whom is far braver than he is. Making herself sick to survive, that you are disappointed and disgusted because you raised him better, and he needs to do better. He needs to understand so he can learn and grow from this. Oop, I told him that it's not her fault she lost her hair. I explained to him that hair is very

important to a girl and that it was hard for her to lose it. I explained that she already feels awful about her looks and he made it worse. External underscore expert underscore 269, sounds like you are doing everything right. Teenagers are just freaking hard. And how disappointing with members thinking that this is acceptable behavior. Don't pay attention to them. Sarah Love Life, I'm not. External underscore Expert underscore 269, you are too hard on yourself. You can raise someone perfectly, but they have their own free will and outside influence. You are not letting his behavior slide. You are being supportive of a family in need.

And you enrolling him into therapy because you know he's better than this. I don't see where you could be dropping the ball. Kids in life are just hard sometimes skeptical. Timely Lyme 1359, not wrong. As a former teacher, I wish more parents would react like this when confronted with their child's bullying behavior. Too many parents make excuses for it and enable it. Your son after round and found out that actions have consequences.

Sarah loved life-oop, I'm not going to allow him to be a bully. I was bullied as a kid and I won't allow it in my home. External underscore Expert underscore 269, there needs to be more moms like you. Update 1. I had a long talk with my son earlier and I think I know why he's acting the way he is. Recently I grounded my 15-year-old son and took everything away after he bullied a girl with cancer for being bald. I gave him back his art supplies to give him an outlet. I am giving him a chance to redeem himself and to earn back a child. electronics, etc. I will be purchasing him new electronics to replace the ones I sold once he shows

a change in behavior. We had a conversation earlier. My son told me that he's gay and he was getting bullied. He wanted to fit in with his new friends because he felt like he had no other friends. My son told me how alone he is feeling. This made me feel awful for being hard on him. He will be starting therapy soon. Can someone with an LGBTQIA, plus child give me advice on how to navigate through this? Comments, Snutku, I'm not a parent of a gay child, but here's my advice. I think you are handling this well. You are right to slowly give his electronics and privileges back.

There still has to be consequences for bullying. If it was me in your shoes, I would seek out a counselor for the two of you that can guide you into this and can also recommend individual therapy for each of you. McMurmel, I think you have handled this right. I do want to ask if you are sure your son did not make this up to get himself out of trouble. You say in your other post besides your son other boys had been bullying this girl. Check back with the school and the girl's mother that they have put a stop to this. Cancer is hard on adults let's alone a kid.

It is tough for a girl or woman to lose her hair. Update 2, I gave my son back his art supplies to give him an healthy outlet. He got a part-time job as a bagger for groceries and I will be taking him to and from work. He starts his new job next week. I also talk to the girl's mom and she's doing better. My son recently came out also. He has been getting bullied for being gay and wanted to fit it with his new friends. His new friends were bullies and troublemakers.

My son talked to me and he genuinely feels awful about what happened. My son wants to make things right with her. He was sweet and offered to shave his head for her. I guess after me cracking down on him, he did a 180 with his behavior. I am proud of him. He still hasn't gained my full trust for him to have electronics back. When he shows me that I can fully trust him again I'll buy him a new phone and computer. Comments, Ami Laura, High School is so damn rough.

I am glad OOP is giving him the opportunity to earn back his electronics and not just giving them back to him. Is being gay in high school hard? Absolutely, but it doesn't give anyone the right to take it out on someone else. I was stoked when OOP gave the money to the girl so she could buy a Wigga Plus parenting right there. Okay, Tap 3378, High school seems so much worse now because of the Internet. Even when all we had was AIM, kids used to still torture the shit out of each other. I can't imagine now.

Creserpup, when I was in H.S., I graduated in 2022, I was part of my school's equivalent to a GSA. We called it something different, though. At one point, it was discovered that someone had created an Instagram account called F. Slur S of, my high school, that featured pictures of students, some of whom were members of our GSA that weren't out to their families for a myriad of reasons, posted without their consent. school administration got the account shut down somehow, but we never found out who was behind it. There were other similar accounts too, which I only found out after the fact. Marginalized students at my HS were lucky that our admin actually gave a fuck, because many school admins don't the internet has made it easier than ever to bully people without attaching your name or face to it. It's honestly scary, when you don't know who's behind it, there's not nearly as much that you can do. Renoa Rita, I teach HS and taught middle school.

When a kid hits middle school parents lose a lot of control and kids start getting more influenced by their friends. But unfortunately, sometimes the friends aren't the best and hive mind dumb-ass boys behavior fester in a certain dynamic. Often when you get these boys alone, they're perfectly okay. But somehow they all bring out the worst in each other. Fortunately, in the big picture, good parenting can save a kid. but it will be really tough, especially if your kid is rebellious.

Corb, but somehow they all bring out the worst in each other. My friend noticed this with her kid. The more boys you added to the group, the lower the collective IQ got. It quickly went from respectable kids to I'm Johnny Knoxville. Welcome to Jackass.