'What was his plan?!': Coffee shop customer defends daughter against theft accusation, cameras prove his involvement

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Jun 20, 2024 5:00 PM EDT

Customers want to think they're always right, but cashiers and retail workers know the truth. A lot of the time, the customer is just wrong. And nobody wants to be confronted with the fact that they've just thrown a petty fit over a minor issue, only to be proven totally wrong. 

Throwing a tantrum rarely solves your problems if you're older than five years old. When adults do it, it's majorly embarrassing. It gives us second-hand cringe to watch people get red in the face over minor issues, like a drink being made wrong, or a cashier insisting they can't return a pair of pants. Some adults never learn that just because you believe in yourself, doesn't mean the world will bend to your will. You might think you're correct, buddy, but the cashier making minimum wage is going to get fired if they let you have a free meal or a giant refund for no reason. 

This college kid was working as a barista and had a lot of memorable encounters with crabby customers. They shared one of these times to the r/pettyrevenge subreddit. You can check out the full story below, as well as advice from commenters who sided with the cashier. 

After that, read about these utterly petty HOA rules, like one person who was stunned when "They told us we couldn't use hoses in our backyard." 

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  • 01
    'What's with the attitude? Are you calling me a liar?'
    via Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash
  • 02
    Customer at Coffeehouse Much like a lot of people during college I had a part-time job at a major coffee chain. It was great because it provided me with extra cash and an unlimited supply of caffeine. Like most chains, the driving factor to draw people in is excellent customer service and that no matter how ridiculous the customer is ALWAYS right.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 03
    On this specific day right before our major rush the only customers we had was a husband, wife with their 4 kids (ages 2-5). Wife tells husband her order while they go through the line and walks out. The 4 girls eventually follow her out after looking through pastry case while husband makes the order.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 04
    No big deal at his point, pretty normal interaction, but I notice one of the girls has take a bottle of water from the pastry case so I mention it to the husband. Husband was really cool about it and even through I told him it was no big deal he still paid the $1.95 for the bottle.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 05
    15-20 minutes go by and our rush has started. We have 15+ people now in line and the husband marches back in straight up to me clearly upset as he walks past the line.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 06
    Husband says to me,"Hey! Why did you tell me my daughter stole a bottle of water?" Me: "My apologies sir, it must have only looked like your daughter took as bottle of water. Not to worry, let me get you back the $1.95"
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 07
    Husband: "What's with the attitude? Are you calling me a LIAR???" - guys is making a pretty big scene and everyone is looking.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 08
    Me: "Not at all sir. I just meant I must have been incorrect with watching your daughter walk out the door holding a bottle of water." I am this point holding the money out to the husband and he is refusing to take it.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 09
    Husband: "It's not about the $1.95, it about the principal. If you are calling me a liar, we can take this outside?" Me: "No sir. Please, you are holding up our line now and need to take your refund and leave."
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 10
    Husband: Starts saying talk a bunch of but is slowly going. Finally after taking the money he say one last condescending remark to many that finally rubs me the wrong way. Me: "Thank you sir. Have a nice day. Enjoy your bottle of water."
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 11
    This then leads to the husband throwing his $1.95 back at me, completely missing me, and hitting one of my co-workers instead. Husband starts demanding to speak to my manager immediately. Luckily, at that moment the manager was out so we defused the situation and told the husband to comeback in an hour to speak to the manager.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 12
    Now after all this build up here comes my petty revenge! After the husband left, my manager got back about 30 minutes later. I explained everything that happened while he was gone. My manager looked perplexed about the story because when he walked in the
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 13
    store after he got back there was an unopened bottle of water shoved between a bunch of coffee mugs on a stand right in front of the entrance. My manager decided to pull the store security tapes and lo-in-behold the put it on the shelf seconds before confronting me at the cash register.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 14
    Guy then comes back just a bit later with a buddy absolutely steaming. I happened to meet him at the front door when he walked in and he demanded to see my manager and telling me he's about to get me fired. My manager comes out to talk to the guy and I slowly stalked off just in ear shot pretending to clean tables to get a front row seat of the show.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 15
    Husband takes no time at all and yells: "I demand an apology, my money back, and that guy fired (and points at me)." My manager calmly turns around, grabs the bottle of water that is still sitting on the shelf behind him, hands it to the guy, and says, "no I don't think so. After looking at the security footage, we watched you bring the bottle back and place it back on the shelf."
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 16
    The sheer look of horror on the husbands face was priceless! | had never seen a person so stunned in my life. It was great, the guy started backtracking and sputtering out non-nonsensical apologies. The crowning moment was still to come.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 17
    My manager then pulls out the $1.95 that was thrown back at me earlier in an envelope with $1.95 wrote on the outside, hands it to the guys, and says, "Clearly you need this more than we do. Now after you apologize to my barista you can get out of my store."
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 18
    The husband was so embarrassed, he refused to take the money back. I have now drifted close enough by, that the guy reaches his hand out to me, shakes my hand, apologizes, and then walks out the store utterly annihilated. This was one of my most satisfying days working. there because I finally got a petty revenge on one of those piece of entitled customer's.
    via u/SA_Juggernaut
  • 19
    Tophertanium As a previous retail manager, I would have had the cops waiting. You escalate to throwing things at my team, I escalate my allowable responses, especially with video evidence of your crime. Glad your boss had your back!
    via u/Tophertanium
  • 20
    RedBullRyan Managers who have your back are the best
    via u/RedBullRyan
  • 21
    spoilersweetie Wait...so his kid tries to steal a bottle of water = you deserving to get fired? , how does logic work in his world?!
    via u/spoilersweetie
  • 22
    Forbin-Project good manager. Shame there are too few like him.
    via u/Forbin-Project
  • 23
    Thoreau80 I certainly would not have shaken his hand.
    via u/Thoreau80
  • 24
    LokiKamiSama Oh if I was the coworker that got hit with the money, I would have demanded a police report be filled out. THAT would have been the cherry on top.
    via u/LokiKamiSama
  • 25
    feraxks Why? Just why? He could have just brought the unopened bottle of water back in, apologized for his kid taking it and then gotten his refund. I don't understand (and I don't think I ever will) the thought process that lead him to hiding the bottle and then going off the deep end.
    via u/feraxks
  • 26
    mgerics ...wt??!?? what was his plan, get someone fired for what unknown reason/be a someone and ruin their to day/icouldgoonforevertrying tofigureoutwhathtisguysplan couldbeormeanorjesuschrist ...i mean, he comes back with a buddy to back up whatever the <expletive> plan was??!?
    via u/mgerics

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drinks boss workplace-stories jobs manager petty-revenge-reddit job kids bosses revenge work revenge-stories petty revenge petty coffee workplace family
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