I Took Away My Family's Christmas Gifts & Kicked Them Out after I Accidentally Overheard Their Conversation

A Reddit user had to make a harsh decision regarding Christmas gifts after family members made fun of his significant other. The couple was supposed to host their first family festivity, but things went haywire.

A 31-year-old male wrote on Reddit about a predicament he had with his family. He shared that he and his long-term boyfriend, 30, purchased a home together in June 2023.

They both have high-paying jobs, and the Original Poster (OP) is known for being the big spender in his family. While his boyfriend has not spoken to his loved ones in over ten years, he has been attending his family celebrations even before they became an item.

OP, who comes from a big family consisting of twenty nieces and nephews and eight cousins, revealed that the kids in the family always look forward to his presents because he goes all out for them.

OP and his family recently held a pre-Christmas celebration since they would not meet any time after that. "It was held at me and my boyfriend's new house, the first family event we've had here," he explained.

His lover was keen on taking part in choosing the presents for the get-together, and so they both went all out on getting the gifts and roughly spent $100 for each person. OP divulged his boyfriend was ecstatic to give everyone their presents since they spent a lot of time picking everything for them.

Where It All Went Wrong

He said everything went well with the festivities until he and his partner stepped away from everyone in the house for some alone time. The couple was resting on the stairs when they overheard OP's 17-year-old female cousin talking to his 15-year-old niece.

"They were joking around about a few family members and mentioned my boyfriend and how he was "too gay to function," said OP, adding it did not bother them too much since they were just kids who were making a movie reference.

However, things took a drastic turn when OP's 24-year-old male cousin joined in on the conversation and made "harsher jokes" about his boyfriend, which the kids laughed at. OP penned:

"These 'jokes' brought my boyfriend to tears, and I refused to let that slide."

The Confrontation

Once they started trading gifts, OP took aside the three who made the remarks and told them he was unhappy with what they said about his partner.

He asked them to apologize, and they blatantly refused, telling him they were joking around and that he and his boyfriend were not supposed to have heard the conversation.

"I told them I didn't care, and they had to apologize. They refused again and I told them that since they don't respect him, they don't deserve the presents we got for them," OP revealed.

They eventually caved and apologized, but OP did not accept it and told them they had already missed their chance. This is where he believes he might have been too harsh on them.

OP's youngest cousin told his aunt that he did not want to give them their presents, which made her angry. She then escalated the matter to other older family members, and they all made "a huge fuss."

Right then, OP and his sister decided to kick them out, and when leaving the house, the relatives tried to grab the gifts on their way out, but OP stopped them. He ensured that they quickly exited his residence. "The whole thing fell apart after that, and it all ended very abruptly," said OP.

The online user admitted that he feels terrible about how he punished his family members. His brother told him he had no right to discipline them because he was not their parent. Moreover, what was supposed to be a memorable evening ended in bad taste and ruined the first celebration at the couple's new place.

Reddit Users Reaction

Here is what other Reddit users had to say about OP's dilemma. While one online user believes OP was "harsh" on his family, others said that he was right in doing what he did. They believe the children were old enough to know better and that it seems like they have a "transactional" relationship with OP.

As a reader, was OP right in taking away the gifts he had bought for his family and kicking them out? What would you do if you found yourself in OP's situation?

Click here to read a story about a bride-to-be who believes she may have overstepped the mark with the gifts she bought for her soon-to-be in-laws.