Reddit Stories - When Duty Calls_ UNEXPECTEDLY ENTRUSTED with Children During a Job INTERVIEW_

Episode Date: September 10, 2025

#redditstories #askreddit #aita #jobinterview #unexpected #children #professionalism #career  Summary: A job interview takes a surprising turn when the candidate is unexpectedly entrusted with looking after children. Confusion and chaos ensue as they navigate this unexpected responsibility while trying to make a good impression.  Tags: redditstories, askreddit, reddit, aita, tifu, jobinterview, unexpected, children, professionalism, career, jobsearch, interviewtips, unexpectedsituation, childcare, responsibility, firstimpressions, jobinterviews, challenging, realstories, worklifebalanceBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/reddit-stories--6237355/support.

I hope you enjoy this story. My siblings' former partner entrusted their children to me while I was in a job interview, so I reached out to him. As a result, she is at risk of losing custody, and our father is considering excluding me from his inheritance if I, don't fix it. My step-sister Lucy, 36F, has 10-year-old twin boys with her ex-husband Gerald, 35M. My dad married Lucy's mother when we were in high school after they met through friends. Lucy's dad had passed away when she was little and my parents had been separated ever since I was

three years old. My dad had full custody and my mother only had visiting rights because she had early onset dementia and passed away when I was in middle school. Lucy is three years older than me and when our parents introduced us to each other, she was 15 and I was just 12. She was kind of older than me and had this air around her, as if I was beneath her and she didn't reciprocate my attempts to make friends with her. Our parents were in a relationship for three years, but she never tried to get to know me or befriend me, probably because I wasn't cool enough for her. I don't know what it was, but for some reason, she never seemed to like me much.

At first, I thought I was imagining it, but with time I realized that she just didn't want me around which was difficult to accept because I had been really excited about getting a big sister. There were times when I would try to talk to her, but she would just roll her eyes at me and on more than one occasion, she slammed her door shut when she saw me outside her room. The funny part was that I would just be minding my own business and playing on my own, it just happened to be right outside her room. It felt like my existing around her was a problem, even if I wasn't trying to talk to her. I didn't understand the concept of Tin once at that point and I used to feel

terrible because of how she used to treat me. But I kept trying to befriend her until I finally reached an age where I could understand that she just wasn't into it and we could never be friends. So after our parents got married, I stopped trying to be her friend. By then I was 15 and she had just turned 18, she was about to graduate and move out for college so it didn't matter anyway if we were friends or not because we wouldn't be living in the same house for long. Once she moved out for college, she would only come back for the holidays or occasionally on the weekends and after she got a job, even those visits reduced considerably.

I also moved out when I started college and got my own apartment a few months after I graduated. Now that both of us were living on our own, we would only get together on the holidays or come back home to see our parents sometimes. We didn't keep in touch once we moved out and were practically strangers who met once or maybe twice a year. Lucy actually met Gerald because of me because I was the one who invited him home for our Christmas party one year. Gerald's sister, Joanna, was in college with me and we remained close friends even after we graduated. One year, she told me that her parents were out of town for Christmas since one of their close family friends was sick and they were visiting him. She mentioned that she and her brother

were bored at home because everyone else seemed to have plans with their family already. So I invited her and her brother home so they could celebrate Christmas with us and that's how Lucy met Gerald. They spent the entire evening together and a few weeks later, Joanne told me that they were going out together. I thought it was sweet and was very happy for them. when they announced that they were getting married after two years of being together. Joanna and I were both bridesmaids, which felt really strange. Lucy and I had never been close and yet I was a bridesmaid at her wedding. But she was actually nice to me after she started dating Gerald and finally acknowledged my existence.

It was probably because Joanna and I were close and it wouldn't be a good look for her if I started telling her the way she used to treat me when I was younger, like she was too good for me and I was a blip in her otherwise perfect life. But she had no reason to worry because that was all in the past and I didn't even care about that stuff anymore. So I wasn't going to bring it up with Joanna and try to sabotage her relationship because I stood nothing to gain from doing that. However, I didn't mind the fact that she was being nice to me just so I would keep my mouth shut about stuff from the past. And I can tell you guys for a fact that the only reason she started being nice to me was because she didn't want me to blab. Because as soon as she hit a rough patch with Gerald, she stopped pretending.

to be my friend and cut ties with me. Throughout their relationship and their marriage, she would text me once a week, check up on me and be all friendly with me but that went out of the window as soon as Gerald filed for divorce. She would do the same for Joanna so I knew that it was completely obligatory and she was doing this only because she would have to see us as every family get together or birthdays and anniversaries. They stayed together for three years so she was my friend for almost five years back then but then the divorce proceeding started and we went back to being strangers again. I didn't know why they were getting divorced because by then they already had a child and it just happened really suddenly. I couldn't ask Lucy the reason why she was getting

a divorce because she clearly didn't feel the need to pretend to be my friend anymore, so I asked Joanna because I was sure that Gerald would have told her. And so I found out that the two of them had been fighting about money because Lucy had been spending money like there was no tomorrow, which wasn't surprising because she always had been a spendthrift and had no sense of financial responsibility. Gerald had tried to talk to her and explained to her that now that they had kids, they couldn't keep spending money without thinking of the future and they had to start saving. Lucy didn't take it well and she told him that since she was an earning member of the family she could do whatever she wanted to with her money and it was not his place to tell her what she

could and couldn't do. However, Lucy earned a lot less than her husband but she spent a lot more than what she earned. So mathematically, she wasn't exactly spending just her own money since she would often make withdrawals from their joint account to make insanely ridiculous and unnecessary purchases. She had purchased a new car for her personal use without even talking to him just a few weeks before they had that discussion and that's actually what had pushed him into talking to her because she had absolutely no need for a new car when her old one was working just fine. When Gerald brought up that she had used his hard-earned money to buy that car, she flipped out at him and started cursing him out. She called him a miser and said that he didn't care for anybody but

himself, which was way out of line because the only reason he was even asking her to think about her finances was because he cared for her and their kids and wanted a better future for their family. She really crossed the line when she dug up a stack of cash from her purse, flung it at his face in a fit of anger, and told him that she would pay him back for the car but until then, he could keep this and stop begging for money from her. That effectively put an end to their marriage and they got divorced soon after. She got to keep the car, just by the way. It's been seven years since then and I haven't been in touch with Lucy, mostly because she cut ties with me, as well as with Joanna and Gerald. We do meet each other on the holidays but she ignores me now, unlike earlier when she would at least greet me but I don't care because I don't like her much either.

Especially not after what Joanna had told me about the reason behind her divorce because I realized she was just an arrogant and stuck up brat and had always been that way. So now suffice it to say that she and I are not friends in any way whatsoever. They have shared custody of the boys and they spend half the year with Lucy and the other half with Gerald. The only time I even meet her kids is when Joanna and I are asked to babysit by Gerald. The three of us have kept in touch and are pretty great friends actually, so it's not uncommon for me to look after the twins whenever Gerald's too busy or Joanna's unavailable. And it's not like Lucy isn't aware of this, she knows and she still acts cold towards me. We haven't spoken to each other in ages and I didn't think I was ever going to talk to her anyway.

But a few weeks ago, she approached me herself because she wanted me to watch the boys for a while because she had work. It was her turn to have the kids and when she showed up at my house, she told me that the sitter hadn't shown up and she couldn't get through to Gerald. She wasn't willing to contact Joanna because she didn't trust that girl and she couldn't ask our parents to watch the kids because they were out of town and none of her friends were interested in looking after the boys. It was a Saturday so they didn't have school either but Lucy had an important appointment with a client and she was already running late for the meeting, so I was the only person that she could turn to. Under normal circumstances, would have taken them in, no questions asked. But I had a really important job interview lined up and I couldn't have two kids running around the house during the interview. I love the twins but they can be quite a handful and they're

really loud and unruly sometimes. I tried to tell Lucy that I couldn't watch them because I had worked to attend to, but she told me that it didn't matter much because I worked from home. So I could manage this, but she had to go attend the meeting in person. She couldn't postpone this because it was an important client and they'd get busy after this so I told her that I was literally in the same situation. However, she insisted that she had to go meet her client in person and it was different for her. I tried to tell her that even if I did work from home, I still needed a certain piece and quiet and I wouldn't be able to watch the kids and do my work. And besides, I had a job interview today and it was a really important one because it would mean better pay and a better

position. I couldn't mess this up because opportunities like these are hard to come by but Lucy didn't seem to care. She pushed the kids inside my house and told me that I was watching them until she was done with her meeting and she would pick them up in the evening. But Until then, I had to look after them whether I wanted to or not because that's what it meant to be a family and I couldn't shirk my duties so I had to suck it up and deal with it. Of course, I didn't like that because as I mentioned above, we are definitely not a family and she has never treated me as such. And we can't become family just for one day according to her convenience.

She left in a hurry before I could even tell her to stop and take her kids with her, she had started driving away as soon as the kids were inside. For the first couple of seconds, I didn't know what to do because I had to hop onto the meeting in an hour and I needed the kids to be picked up before that. My first instinct was to call their father, but just like Lucy had told me, the calls wouldn't go through. So I decided to call Joanna and luckily, she answered so I explained the situation to her and she was at my place in no time.

She took the kids away with her even though she had a day off, but I was so happy that she was sacrificing it just to help me out. My interview went great and I ended up getting the job but things didn't end well for Lucy. After the interview I received a call from Gerald, Joanna had already told him everything and when he called me, he told me that he had been unavailable in the morning because there had been some issue with the electric circuit in his house. And every single electronic appliance in his house was busted when he woke up, including his phone, since it had been charging overnight. It had been a crazy morning for him and he hadn't been able to receive any calls because his phone. was dead. He'd left his laptop at work the previous day as well. He told me that he had to run

around town in person to find an electrician and get everything fixed. He also had to get a new phone because he couldn't get his old one to work and that's how he could finally talk to us. The universe had a line just perfectly to screw everything up for literally every single person involved and it had been an insane morning for all of us. But Lucy was the only one who had acted selfishly and just abandoned her kids with me. I told Gerald that I had told her several times that I couldn't look after them because I had a job interview, but she still pushed them inside and told me that I had to look after them because I was apparently family now and it was my duty. I hadn't told Joanna about the argument in the morning that day

because I was in such a hurry but in the evening. I explained everything to both of them and told them all about the argument and how she had forced me to take the kids in and driven away before I could oppose it. Gerald seemed very annoyed while I was telling them about it and later on I found out that was because apparently, this was not even the first time that Lucy had pulled off something like this. This had been happening quite frequently in the past couple of months where Lucy would just drop the kids off at her relatives' places or worse, their common friends' homes, on the pretext of having important work to attend to and then drive away before they could protest. Some of them would deal with it and look after the kids but most of them would end up calling Gerald

and asking him to pick up the kids because they were not ready to watch them on such short notice. He had told Lucy several times that this was negligent and really irresponsible of her. It was also very embarrassing for him because more often than not, he would have to be the one to apologize to whoever she had inconvenienced. But she said that since it was her turn to have the kids, she could decide whatever she wanted to and he needed to stay out of it. She would refuse to call Gerald, Joanna, or me for help because of course she was too proud to do it. But she had to turn to me that day because apparently, everybody else had refused

to even open the door to her since they didn't want to give up their Saturday watching her kids. We found out about that recently, after Gerald asked around to strengthen his case to get full custody. They had been fighting over Lucy's behavior ever since she received that promotion and her workload increased. Because now she was neglecting her kids and after the incident with me, he decided that he had enough and it was time that he applied for full custody. There were also a couple of other things that had been bothering him because Lucy had been spoiling the kids rotten while they were living with her and it was always a task for him to get them to behave when they started living with him.

For years, he would try to teach them to behave themselves, but Lucy believed in letting boys be boys and so she would let them run wild around the house without bothering to discipline them or teach them right from wrong. So by the time they came back to Gerald, all the hard work that he had, put in during his half of the year would be undone. He said he couldn't take any more of this, and soon after that day, he filed for full custody, which turned out to be the worst for me because my dad is now losing his mind since Lucy might end up losing custody of her children. He called me the day that Lucy was served and told me to fix this in whatever way that I could,

by speaking to Gerald or Joanna and making sure they know that Lucy is really a great mother. I told him I wasn't going to do any of that and Lucy is not even close to a good mother. so it will be doing the kids a huge favor if I don't interfere in the custody battle. But he insisted that I do what he said or else he would cut me out of his will and never speak to me again. He says that Lucy hasn't stopped crying ever since she was served and he believes that this is all my fault because I should have just watched the kids for a while that day instead of throwing a fit about it and getting the others involved. I don't understand how this is my fault because Lucy has never been my friend. She can't just show up one day and expect me to treat her like family and do whatever she asks me

to. And honestly, even if Gerald had been the one to approach me that day, which he never would have without prior notice, I still would have said no and he would not have forced me either. That's what a good parent does. They take responsibility for their kids instead of forcing other people to take them in. I tried to argue with my father and talk some sense into him but he wouldn't listen to me and gave me an ultimatum. He told me that I could either talk to Gerald and get this fixed or I would lose him. I'd have for telling my stepsister's ex-husband that she dumped her kids on me on the day of my job interview. Update 1, hey, so a lot of you have been asking about my relationship with my father. Well, it's okay.

I was actually a lot closer to my mom when she was alive. But anyway, coming to my dad, he and I have had a normal relationship growing up. Right now we are not that close and haven't been ever since I moved out. He has been a busy man throughout my life and I haven't ever really had the chance to really build a relationship with him. It's not bad but it's not great either. It's somewhere in the middle. I believe that he and Lucy are pretty tight right now, which is why he is on her side, even though it's the wrong side of history. My stepmom and I have also never been close, but she hasn't ever been as horrible to me as other stepmoms could be.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I have just always had a normal relationship with all of them. It's never been bad, but it's never been great either, just neutral. I also just want to make it clear that I couldn't have changed the time of my meeting because that would have seemed unprofessional. I was already asking them to conduct the interview on a Saturday since I was working every other day. Also, I shouldn't have to change my routing to accommodate someone else's kids, the very belief that I should is pretty absurd. There's also been a lot of hue and cry about us working Saturdays, but I don't see what the big deal is. It's just a couple of times in a one-off thing. Nobody works every weekend. It's nothing uncommon really, especially given the current

work culture in our line of work. I'm a social media marketing specialist and my sister works in advertising. As far as I know, working Saturdays isn't unheard of. So I hope that clears things up since many of you were confused as to why I had an interview on a weekend. Also, just to be clear, Gerald and I became friends after he started dating Lucy. So, there, I hope that clears everything. Update 2, it's been a week since I posted here and the custody battle has already started, so it's too late for me to do anything but my father has still been trying to get me to talk to Gerald and do something about this.

He thinks that I'm the only one who can do something because he is my friend and he might listened to me. He has also been playing the family card relentlessly, just like Lucy had tried to, and says that I should think about her first. I have tried to explain to him that it's too late for me to do anything and I also don't want to say anything about this because it's not my place. This is between the kids' parents and since I'm not even a blood relative to them, I think it would be really inappropriate for me to try and get him to stop. In addition to that, I also don't want to do this because I don't think Gerald is in the wrong. I think he is doing the right thing by trying to get full custody of his children. It's the best thing for all of them in the long run.

Lucy is arrogant, rude, and entitled and I don't think she is a good influence on the kids. She is going to raise them to be exactly like herself and why would anybody want that to happen, least of all their father. I haven't said that to my dad but if he bothers me again then I just might snap and say that because that's exactly what I think. Funnily enough, while my dad has been fighting for Lucy and talking her up to get me to change my mind, she hasn't had a word for me. I don't think she has much to say anyway because she knows that this is just her own fault. Update 3.

So I received a call from my dad's lawyer today and he told me that my dad was cutting me out of the will since I hadn't done what he had asked me to. It's been three weeks since my last update and I have been busy with my new job. There is a lot that I have to catch up on and I have a lot on my plate right now, so I can't afford to waste my time dealing with my dad and his antics. So I told his attorney that I was fine with it and then I hung up before he could say anything else. My dad found that very insulting so he took it upon himself to visit me and tell me that he was very disappointed in how I was behaving. He came by in the evening, just as I got off work and

even when I told him that I wasn't interested in talking to him right now because I had a really long day, he refused to leave and told me that we needed to have this conversation. But I stood my ground and I refused to let him in, so he stood on the porch and began to lecture me about the importance of family. He told me that I had ruined Lucy's life by complaining about her to Gerald knowing that he would jump at the opportunity to take her kids away from her because he was apparently a selfish man who cared about nothing but himself and only wanted to make her suffer because he still held a grudge against her for whatever had happened in the past. Now, I could have told my father that this couldn't be further from the truth, but there was no point because he was

only going to believe what Lucy had told him. So instead I satisfied myself by telling him that he could continue to tell himself that she was the one who was right and everybody else was wrong. He was free to do whatever he pleased as long as he kept me out of it so if you wanted to then he could talk to Gerald and try to defend Lucy but I wasn't going to do his dirty work for him. Then I tried to shut the door but he started yelling at me and said that I had no loyalty towards my family and I ignored it. When he realized that I wasn't going to let him get to me, he decided to strike a really low blow and said that it was probably for the best that I didn't have any kids of my own because I would make a terrible mother. And then he turned around to go back home because

he knew that he had hit me where it hurt. Don't get me wrong, I love my life as it is. But I have found myself wishing that I had a family of my own as well. I have had boyfriends in the past, but it's never lasted long enough for me to get serious and I have been really hurt in relationships. Because my longest relationship ended with the guy cheating on me, so I couldn't bring myself to trust people again for a really long time. He and I had been together for several years, almost five, and had even been planning to get married. But unfortunately, it ended when I found out that he had been having an affair with his secretary. That relationship had come to an end just a couple of years ago and everybody in the family had known about it because

I had been depressed in the aftermath of the breakup and it had taken me a really long time to get back on my feet again. I'm doing better now and have moved on. But it still hurts when people bring it up. And for my own father to use it against me I couldn't believe that he was actually making a mockery out of something so awful but I got over it pretty soon once I realized that this guy wasn't my dad anymore. This was Lucy's family coming after me because I had hurt her. My dad was long gone and now I had no parents, so I had no need to feel bad about what a stranger said to me. Thinking about it like that made it really easy for me to deal with. It still kind of hurts, but it's done now and the only thing I can do is cut them all out of my life for good.

Forward slash forward slash update 4. So this is going to be a short update for those of you who were asking about what happened with the custody case. I'm sure that this will not come as a surprise to anyone but Gerald got full custody. of the kids. We all saw it coming and we were really happy for him, as well as the kids, because this is what is best for them. Lucy wasn't happy about it and decided that she was going to get back at us by running her mouth all over town and telling everybody that we had ruined her life and stolen her kids from her. It's ironic that she has been talking so much about how much she misses her kids but it's been almost a month since she lost custody of them

and yet she hasn't even been to visit them once. She still has visiting rights so there is no excuse for this and it just goes to show how little she cares about them. And that she has only been talking about the kids for sympathy. A mother who uses her kids to gain sympathy doesn't deserve them anyway, in my opinion. At least Joanna and I still get to see them. They miss their mom but they'll be fine. My work is also going pretty well. I haven't spoken to anyone whom I dislike so I really don't have any regrets right now.