My sister was set to marry Jack — her boyfriend of five years. They were perfect together (or so we all thought). As a wedding gift, I promised them \$10,000 to put toward a down payment on their first home.
I was excited to do it — because Jack was like a brother to me, and my sister swore this was her forever love.
Then everything exploded.
Jack found out she was cheating on him… with his best friend from high school.
He called off the wedding.
I backed him completely.
Cue the chaos.
My sister was furious — not remorseful. Furious. She tossed around words like “overreaction,” “just a fling,” and “he’ll come crawling back when he cools off.” I was disgusted.
Then, two days later, she called me up with the most jaw-dropping sense of entitlement I’ve ever witnessed.
“Sooo… the wedding didn’t happen, whatever. I still want my \$10,000 gift. I need a MASSIVE shopping spree to cheer myself up.”
I just stared at my phone.
Was she for real?
That’s when a delicious little idea sparked.
She clearly needed a lesson more than she needed money.
So I took a slow, deep breath and responded sweetly:
“Of course, dear. About the money — there’s just one small issue. It’s non-refundable.”
She clicked her tongue. “What does that mean?”
“Well,” I said, “since it was earmarked specifically for your marriage to Jack… I already transferred it.”
“To WHOM???”
“To Jack,” I said brightly.
I could hear her jaw hit the floor.
“YOU DID WHAT?!”
“He was the groom. It was a gift for your future together… so since you’re not together, I gave him full ownership. I guess now it’s his shopping spree.”
The shriek on the other end was absolutely glorious.
She called me every name in the book, swore she’d take me to court, and hung up sobbing. Meanwhile… Jack texted me:
“I just used part of it to put a deposit on my dream apartment. Thank you — not just for the money… but for choosing integrity over blood.”
That text felt better than any dollar I could have spent.
And my sister?
She never asked me for money again.
Sometimes the best “wedding gift”…
…is a wake-up call.