The Babysitter’s Hangover: A Family Reunion Fiasco
Alright, darling reader, buckle up for this wild ride through one of those family reunion tales you know I’m always eager to dish about. This one, my friends, is a story straight from the treasure trove of Reddit, where a young heroine, let’s call her “Emily” (17F), dared to tread the perilous waters of familial expectations and alcoholic beverages.
Field of Nightmares
Emily finds herself in the picturesque countryside of Germany, a place that’s practically begging for a postcard. Every year, her family rents out a sprawling mansion that comes complete with an adjoining cornfield—a perfect setting for kids to run wild. But, oh sweet irony, these fields also require a watchful eye to prevent the younger cousins, ages 3-13, from wandering off into the abyss.
A Duty Thrown Over
For the past five years since she was just a wee babe of 12, Emily has been the go-to guardian for her troop of cousins. Why, you might ask? Because she oozes responsibility, obviously! While the adults conveniently morph into high-spirited revelers with lowered inhibitions courtesy of their drink of choice, Emily’s role becomes akin to that of a quasi-nanny.
The Year of Seventeen
Now here’s where the plot thickens. In the land of Emily’s familial traditions, 17 marks the magical age where one can finally join the adults in their Bacchanalian bliss. Ah, the lure of the promised land! Emily watched each of her older cousins ascend to this rite of passage, and now it was her turn. Or was it?
The Betrayal
In a twist that would leave M. Night Shyamalan gasping, Emily finds out she’s still expected to babysit. Not by her parents, mind you—oh no! It was her extended family laying down this “don’t touch that drink” decree. And did Emily revolt? Oh, did she ever. She stealthily took to nursing her own covert bottle, getting delightfully tipsy far from the prying eyes of her uncles and aunts.
Chaos Unleashed
The floodgates of chaos truly open when her little cousins, sent by their responsible-in-theory-but-not-in-practice parents, come seeking her out. Imagine their collective surprise finding the once-responsible Emily in a state of euphoric inebriation. Shaking them off, she sends them back to their intoxicated creators. It hits the fan when said parents lay eyes on a tipsy teenage Emily. Suddenly, she’s the villain of the night.
Sounding the Alarm
The morning brings a verbal lashing fiercer than anything you’ve seen on a daytime soap. “You neglected the children!” “They could have gotten lost in the fields!” All hyperbolically shouted to a now-sober Emily. Our steadfast protagonist realizes she’s been shunned, demoted without ceremony. Her 14-year-old sister and a very questionably sober 13-year-old cousin are now promoted to babysitting insurrectionists.
Hypocrisy Served Cold
Hold up, sugar, here’s the cherry on top! Emily finds out this same cabal of sanctimonious adults had slipped her 13-year-old cousin an illicit drink. Like some deranged family version of “Animal House,” these hypocrites had frankly moved on to their next victim. It plays out like an absurd dark comedy, heads spinning around the sheer lunacy of it all.
Roger’s Judgment
And now, let’s spill the tea: Emily, darling, you’re NOT the asshole. This isn’t a game of double standards; it’s a veritable arena full of backflips and somersaults of hypocrisy. First of all, there’s a thing called fair play. If every one of your cousins had the pleasure of hitting the sauce at 17, you deserve the same without having to run a kindergarten on the sideline.
The fact they bestowed the responsibilities and then stripped them with judgment raining down—well, how mightily self-righteous. If anything, take solace in the amusement of recognizing their baseless moral high ground. Next time, make sure you set your boundaries loud and clear, darling.
Until our next session of familial faux pas, keep sipping that tea and honing that sass!
Original story
I (17F) am on holiday at a family reunion. Every year we rent out a big house as a whole family.
We are currently in a rural town in Germany so the house is connected to feilds.
So obviously you don’t want my cousins 3-13 to get lost. Ever since I was 12 I’ve been in charge of looking after my cousins in the night at family reunions because I’m the most responsible and all the adults get wasted so I’m in charge of keeping them safe.
I had older cousins who were 13-17 but I was the most responsible.
Usually there’s a tradition in my family that once you’re 17 you get to join the family in getting drunk. All my older cousins got the opportunity to.
I’m now 17 so I assumed I’d be allowed to join the adults but no yesterday I was told not to drink by my family (not my parents but my extended family?).
I wasn’t babysitting at the time and never agreed to babysit. So I took some anyway and got drunk on my own.
Then my cousins come to be asking to play with me and I said go back to your parents together. They said they told them to come be with me I said I’m not well go back to them.
So I go back with them. The family then see I’m drunk and get pissed off im drunk around their kids.
(I was not acting in any erratic way and they have seen several drunk people before including my older cousins)
This morning they were saying I neglected them and they could’ve ran off into the feilds and stuff. So today they have been keeping the kids away from me even though I’m sober now obviously but they are keeping me away from them and saying that my 14 year old sister and 13 year old cousin are now responsible for them because I can’t be trusted.
But I come to find out that my 13 year old cousin has been GIVEN ALCOHOL. BY THOSE EXACT SAME FAMILY MEMBERS.
Because my sister doesn’t drink so she can look after them for tonight. I feel like the whole family hate me but idk.
Maybe I might be the asshole because I knew they usually make me babysit but got drunk anyway. Am I The Asshole?
TL;DR I’m usually expected to babysit my cousins but wasn’t asked so just got drunk but it turned out I was expected to babysit.