15-year-old ‘favorite child’ brother destroys 22-year-old sister's high school journal, mother reveals she told him where the journal was: ‘I am moving out as fast as I can’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Jan 5, 2025 2:00 PM EST

Favoritism, unfortunately, is not uncommon within family dynamics. If you've never heard of the "golden child" effect, this story will inform you on all you need to know.

A golden child can do no wrong in the eyes of their parents, even if said "golden" child does not behave, refuses to do anything for others, and manipulates everyone around them. On the contrary, "oldest daughter syndrome" occurs when a pair of parents' first child is a girl. Parents in these scenarios assume that their daughter should know emotional maturity at a young age—that it is a virtuous understanding and they must suppress their own emotions for the greater good of the family.

In this next story, we have a case of both phenomena. The user who posted this story explains that her 15-year-old brother has always been the family favorite despite his bad behavior. One day, she comes home to find that her high school journal is destroyed. Her mother, instead of placing blame on the son and herself (because she told him where the journal was), she blames the daughter for "tempting" him. Needless to say, the 22-year-old wants out of the house as soon as possible.

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  • The by pr There are method heldag af day at Saved So the evening of bon latore. Tought to the eve of the end on Novemberfest. Thes The 4th formal Novembfact I was bible to get Jomph and Matt to participate. Nod year it be the 5th Annual and I hope to spare it to many others. Could this be a Movement that could sviral? to fame and fortune all it is Cracked up to be No. lot is lost when move into that reals. Repacially of your price prosnal spore Are the ideale you being delivered to them? Or AR I
    via Joshua Hoehne For Unsplash+
  • AITA for lashing out at my brother for burning my journal "accidentally?"
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • I(22F) keep a journal that documented my whole high school life. My high school life was great so I wrote every single thing in it, attached keepsakes and it was really pretty. I poured my heart into the
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • journal while writing and drawing for each page. My college lifesks so I would always skim through the journal to reminisce time to time.
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • Now, my brother(15M).He is the youngest one in our family, and, you guessed it, the favourite child. We are two children, and I am always supposed to look after him and I am blamed for whatever he does. He
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • is a bu y at school, fails all classes and from time to time. I usually keep important things locked and away from him, by keeping a key in a bottle only I knew where it was kept.
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • So one week ago my mother (55F) talks to me about why I keep my things locked. She said that I should not keep secrets from her because "I'm not old enough to know about things?". In
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • all sincerety, I loved and trusted my mother at the time. I had the confidence to entrust anything in her. I get back home from college and the first thing I notice- my room is
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • messy. Like it's been searched, but messily and helplessly put together to avoid suspicion. On the table I saw my journal, with pages ripped out and many pages burned.
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • Cheezburger Image 10450060288
    via Unsplash (Yuvraj Singh)

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • I argued with my brother for this and he said he "didn't know" and that he thought "it was any old book." I told mom and I was shocked to hear that she told him the place where I keep the keys.
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • Nevertheless, she wanted to scold him but the moment she stepped into the room, my brother started 'crying.' She immediately shifted the blame and asked me
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • why I would keep my room locked and tempt him to come into my room. I told her why would you give him the lock and that this would have never happened if you had never gave him the lock. She just
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • screamed at me and said that I was immature and 'you are not too old to understand enough.' What should I do, and, AITA?'
    via IllustriousFoot1070

  • In the mother placing blame on her daughter instead of her son or herself, she's setting a toxic precedent that screams, “dysfunctional”.

    To any outsider looking in, it's clear that the brother had malicious intent and went out of his way to destroy something that mattered to his sister. Knowing their preexisting family dynamic, the brother might have thought he'd get away with his poor actions—and he was right.

    Even if the user's mother thought, even for a second, that what the brother did was distasteful, she quickly disposed of her rational thought and returned to catering to the “golden child”. This is the way things often go in family dynamics such as these, and luckily, the user knows she does not deserve this treatment. As a result, she's taken to planning her eventual move-out and considers getting out as soon as possible for her own mental health.

     

  • EDIT: my mom came Into my room an hour ago and "Tried to make me understand" in her own. words. I told her that I am moving out as fast as I can from this h hole and that she and her son can
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • live here as long as they want. I also told her that one day her son would leave her for someone else, and to mark my words, she will come back to me. She dismissed all my words as
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • I'm not in the right state of my mind or something. I will update if anything else happens. Forgot to add that he sided with my brother and that "he's
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • young" and that he is a boy, and boys do that!!!?! I was so triggered after that so I just cracked in a way.
    via IllustriousFoot1070
  • PhilosopherCat511 NTA You're entitled to your privacy and you're well within your right to keep stuff locked away, particularly if you think your brother might get to them and don't want that. You're also not "tempting him" by keeping it. locked, that just sounds like an excuse to justify his behaviour.
    via PhilosopherCat511
  • Your mum also shouldn't be shifting the blame onto you, your brother should know better than to ruin people's stuff, particularly if it's of sentimental value.
    via PhilosopherCat511
  • Medical_Sky_1072 You're 22, not a child. She just keeps saying "you're not old enough to understand these things" but you literally are. Remove anything else precious or valuable in your room and store it somewhere else. And as for your mother, personally I'd keep her at arms length from now on, as it's clear she will just gaslight you for her own failings as a parent.
    via Medical_Sky_1072

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family drama aita journal brother mother sibling rivalry siblings reddit story family feud favoritism favorite family sister reddit thread Reddit mom golden child
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