Of all the things ever invented by humanity, double standards are perhaps among the most insidious that allow us to save face by doing almost any nasty thing. In other words, we act badly towards others, and when they do approximately the same thing towards us, we are sincerely indignant over this.
A separate category of stories about double standards is wedding steals, when a relative makes an important announcement right at someone else’s wedding, automatically shifting the “center of gravity” from the newlyweds to themselves. This is damn unpleasant, you must agree – this is exactly what happened in this story from the user u/No_Kiwi_2, and even twice – the second as revenge for the first. Intrigued? Then let’s read on!
More info: Reddit
The author of the post has a brother who got married a few days ago
Image credits: Asad Photo Maldives (not the actual photo)
The author held a grudge against his brother for proposing at his own wedding some time ago
Image credits: u/No_Kiwi_2
Moreover, when the brother sounded his idea of proposing, the author was strictly against it – but to no avail
Image credits: Bethany Ferr (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/No_Kiwi_2
So when it was the time for the author to make his toast, he loudly announced his wife’s pregnancy
Image credits: Kelly Sikkema (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/No_Kiwi_2
The newlyweds weren’t happy but the author thought it was the perfect petty revenge. Especially since he actually lied and his spouse wasn’t pregnant…
So who do we have today? There are two brothers, both adults and both married, and one got married just recently. When the Original Poster (OP) was planning his wedding some time ago, his bro announced that he wanted to propose to his girlfriend at his ceremony. The author, of course, objected – who would want their big day stolen?
The OP said that if the brother proposed at his wedding, he’d kick him out – but the brothers’ mom immediately intervened. Apparently, she had her favorite and our hero wasn’t it. So, the mother said that the second brother should be given the opportunity to make an important announcement in front of numerous relatives whom he’s unlikely to see in the foreseeable future.
In general, this is what happened. The brother proposed right during the original poster’s wedding, attracted some of the attention of the guests – and the OP was literally seething inside, but restrained himself. However, revenge, as the ancients liked to say, is a dish better served cold. And finally it was time to pay the bills…
The OP’s brother got married a few days ago – and, of course, our hero was also present at the ceremony. And when it was time for him to make his toast, the guy stood up… and loudly announced that his wife was pregnant!
The effect was similar to that of Tony Stark’s press conference when he suddenly admitted that he was the Iron Man. Everyone vied with each other to congratulate the OP and his overly surprised wife, and if anyone was unhappy at that moment, it was the newlyweds – and the brothers’ mom, of course.
This decent lady tried to reproach the OP for ‘being impolite’ here, but the author gently hinted that now was ‘an excellent opportunity to please relatives with the news, many of whom they would not see again soon’. The OP’s mom tried to say something else, but got shut up by her own mom, the brothers’ grandma.
And now the main plot twist! Do you know why the OP’s wife was so surprised when he made his announcement? Because he lied and she wasn’t pregnant! Well, now the spouses need to try to make this announcement true in the nearest future – or come up with some kind of justification in front of those relatives…
However, the main thing in this instructive story is that the basic principle of successful petty (or not that petty) revenge has been observed. Well, you remember what those very ancients said, right? An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and a stolen wedding for a stolen wedding!
Image credits: Los Muertos Crew (not the actual photo)
Well, experts almost unanimously say that proposing at someone else’s wedding looks disrespectful – especially if the newlyweds are against it. “The wedding is a showcase for a couple’s love story,” The Knot quotes Lea Rhynehardt, the owner and lead planner with North Carolina-based Lea Rhynehardt & Co. “This is a day we get to witness two people celebrating their journey of creating this union and deciding to be together for the rest of their lives. A wedding is a time for the newlyweds to be celebrated by family and friends.”
“It’s in poor taste to announce your big news at someone else’s wedding or special event,” etiquette expert Jacqueline Whitmore also claims in the interview to PEOPLE. “If you announce your own engagement while at a friend’s wedding, instead of focusing on the newlyweds and their relationship, you are choosing to focus on how the couple positively impacts your relationship.”
And in any of our posts dedicated to such stories, none of the newlyweds were happy about such an announcement. N. O. N. E. So the commenters are almost sure that the original poster simply took good revenge on his treacherous bro. “What goes around comes around,” one commenter claimed. However, some are sure that this was not the perfect revenge. “The correct way to do this would have been: ask his permission, get rejected, then do it anyway,” another person added wittily.
Some commenters also wondered how the author’s wife reacted to the unexpected news of her pregnancy, which she herself had no idea about. The guy honestly admitted that she was angry with him – but it was definitely worth it. “He got what he deserved” was perhaps the main idea of most of the people in the comments. So do you, our dear readers, agree with this point of view?
People in the comments praised the man for such a witty act of revenge, and claimed it was actually okay to do so in return
