16-year-old steals well-off sister's toiletries because she has disposable income: 'She works a lot but a lot of it was dumb luck'

Author image for JR Atkinson
JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor
Jul 28, 2025 10:00 PM EDT

Siblings are not always the easiest to get along with. Anyone who has ever had one could tell you that. When you live with someone, they have the ability to get under your skin like nobody else does. You're so familiar with one another that nothing they do could ever surprise you. You know their habits and their ways, and you know how much all of that can annoy you to no end. But this doesn't change the fact that you're siblings and you'll be siblings forever. So that means you'll have to put up with them just a little bit. 

But what happens when sibling resentment grows over time? What happens when one of you thinks the other is being unfair? Do you have the right to rectify it where you see injustices, or should you just accept your lot in life? 

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  • 01

    AITA for telling my sister she should contribute after she yelled at me for using her stuff?

    My (16f) family is not very well off. We live in one of the most expensive cities in the country, top 20 most expensive in the world. My dad owns a small business and my mom's an elementary school teacher so we're really not rich.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 02
    Cheezburger Image 10535694336
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • Those are the questions that came up in this story, where a pair of sisters, both living at home, were trying to make it work. But where one of them was well-off financially, the other one wasn't so lucky. So when she tried her luck and stole a few small items from her, she thought she was within her rights to do so. Read on to see what happened. 

  • 03
    My sister (24) lives with us rent free even though she makes almost twice as much as my mom. She works a lot but a lot of it was dumb luck. Her main job is singing for her boyfriend's church. She sings 3 days a week and they got her a car, pay her $50,000 a year, gave her an allowance for college, and they send her to other churches across the country and even went to Europe a couple times with a group of people to preach.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 04
    Besides the church thing, she is a private swim coach. She charges $150 an hour for private lessons or $100/kid/hour for group lessons and she does that like 5 or 6 hours a week. Then on top of that she babysits for one of the pastors for like $40 an hour, she's a substitute teacher, and she might start teaching mommy and me classes at the church daycare.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 05
    I know it sounds like a lot but it really comes out to 1 full time job. Church is about 15 hours a week between performances and rehearsals and other events, babysitting is about 10- 15 hours a week, coaching is 5-6 hours, and subbing is like 3-6 hours a week.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 06
    She has a lot of disposable income because she makes really good money and the only thing my parents make her pay for is her car insurance, which the pastor pays half of since she drives his kids in her car. Since she has a lot of money, she gets to buy some really nice stuff.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 07
    My brother, other sister, and I use the $2 shampoo and conditioner. Our toothbrushes and toothpaste come from the dollar store, laundry detergent is whatever's cheapest even if it doesn't work great and I'm pretty sure they water it down. My oldest sister pays $14 for a bottle of shampoo that's smaller than my $2 one. She gets body wash at lush and gets to use detergent that doesn't make her clothes fade. She even gets her own food because she likes name brand and my parents always get generic.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 08
    She paid me $20 a week to do her chores so I started putting some of her shampoo and conditioner and body wash in little travel bottles so I can use some. And I'd take some of her detergent pods and scent beads to use on my clothes. And I'd eat some of her snacks. She eventually caught me because she noticed her stuff disappear faster and my brother ratted me out and she yelled at me and called me a little thief.
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 09
    I told her she's a selfish b and if she has money for name brand premium everything she should contribute so the rest of us can use something at least kinda decent. Now she's staying at her boyfriend's apartment and is threatening to move out if my parents don't do something about me "stealing". My brother and other sister think she's overreacting but my parents are pretty p ed. AITA for telling her to contribute
    via u/Certain_North_1731
  • 10
    Cheezburger Image 10535694592
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 11

    Commenters had a lot to say about her behavior.

    Ok-Presentation-2068 • 15h ago YTA for sure. You stole from your sister. Stealing isn't okay just because someone has more money than you. Whether she needs to contribute or not is between her and your parents, and is none of your business.
    via u/Ok-Presentation-2068
  • 12
    If you want nice things, then go out and get a job after school. You don't get to steal from someone just because you have less than them, or because you think they've had "dumb luck". My next door neighbor won the lottery and has way nicer things than I do. I don't go steal it just because he was lucky.
    via u/Ok-Presentation-2068
  • 13
    No_Control8031 • 15h ago YTA. Your sister is working four jobs. Even if none of them are full time there is an attendant mental load that adds up. She buys her own nicer stuff using that money. You could have just asked her nicely for some of her good products but you were sneaky. I don't really see anything that your sister did wrong here.
    via u/No_Control8031
  • 14
    whydoweneedthiscrap • 15h ago Yta you stole from your sister, got caught and now you're angry. Buy your own fancy things when you get a job and you'll understand why you are TA
    via u/whydoweneedthiscrap
  • 15
    salty_much64 • 15h ago YTA, If you want nice stuff go get a job, you're a thief with a nasty attitude and entitlement problem.
    via u/salty_much64
  • 16
    shinytelor 15h ago Girl, you are not entitled to her money. YTA
    via u/shinytelor
  • 17
    mavenmim.15h ago YTA. It sounds like life feels pretty unfair, but you were stealing. It was small stuff, but it wasn't yours and you were systematically taking it without permission. Your sister works really hard and organises a lot of different
    via u/mavenmim
  • 18
    activities that take a lot of effort to coordinate (and is supposed to do her fair share of chores on top of that). She probably should contribute to the household, but that is between her and your parents. She paid you $20 a week to do her chores, and didn't agree to give you her detergent, products or snacks. You broke her trust. Now you may well lose your income.
    via u/mavenmim
  • 19
    RICO_the_GOP • 15h ago I told her she's a selfish b You steal from HER and call her ? YTA. Also if she is ab "threatening" to move out, why would that matter if she is not contributing anything?
    via u/RICO_the_GOP
  • 20
    No-Assignment5538 15h ago • YTA. What ever arrangement your sister has with your parents that she is living at the home rent free, it does not give you the right to steal her things - let's be 100% clear on that you are a thief who felt justified in taking her stuff. You also don't
    via u/No-Assignment5538
  • 21
    have the right to demand that she change her arrangement with your parents to suit you. You are 16, you likely have no real clue what is going on in this situation and you are almost certainly not privy to all the details the arrangement
    via u/No-Assignment5538
  • 22
    InternationalOil540 15h ago . YTA- your sister is not your parent and not responsible for your living situation. Your parents not charging her rent is also NOT your business. You're jealous and trying to rationalize your misdeeds. You stole from her & you are wrong for that. It
    via u/InternationalOil540
  • 23
    would be nice for your sister to contribute to the house, but its not her responsibility and you dont know what her finances are. You are guessing based on the limited information you have from the outside looking in. If your parents think she should contribute to the household then that is a conversation for
    via u/InternationalOil540
  • 24
    them to have with her- not you. Whats stopping you from getting a part time job so you can buy the premium products you're stealing from your sister?
    via u/InternationalOil540
  • 25
    Dittoh... 15h ago Edited 5h ago • • YTA While I agree that your sister should be contributing to household expenses, that is your parents' business, not mine or yours.
    via u/Dittoheadforever
  • 26
    You basically just gave a whole bunch of excuses as to why you think it's okay for you to steal from your sister. Instead of being a thief, you should be getting a job and being as ambitious as you make her sound.
    via u/Dittoheadforever
  • 27
    Jessi... • 15h ago Edited 13h ago YTA You are a thief. You have somehow convinced yourself that it is okay for you to steal because you do not have the same things she does. Get a job, earn money, and then buy your own stuff. Just like she is doing.
    via u/JessieColt
  • 28
    namitsuki 15h ago • YTA. She paid you $20 a week to do her chores, so why didn't you save and used that money to buy your own shampoo, conditioner, detergent and snacks?
    via u/namitsuki

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aita AITAH stealing brother sibling rivalry sibling memes siblings money problems reddit story family feud family sibling sister reddit thread Reddit money
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