AITA for putting out a cigarette on my deranged brother’s wife?
For context, I 32 M, have a very big, loving family. I have 7 siblings, and we are all quite close-knit. We grew up in a very religious household, and with my father being a pastor of our local church up in Utah. When I got older, I decided i wanted to leave the cuckoo’s nest and find my own way around life. For that reason, I hadn’t actually seen my family in quite a while; busy with my new work and apartment in my new state of Delaware. As I had recently moved to Delaware, it was hard for me to see my family as much as I used to. My youngest brother 23 M, called me up asking me to come to his wedding. I didnt even know that he was in a relationship, so evidently, I was quite confused with this information. We agreed that I would stay with my parents a week before so that I didnt have to drive up to Utah before the wedding and be tired beforehand, and also to see my other siblings aswell. When I was in the ceremony, I was a shocked to see a blonde, bimbo looking woman walking down the aisle in a revealing looking wedding dress. My Dad gasped, as he saw her walking towards the alter, clearly not expecting that type of dress. I too was confused, as I knew my Dad would never give his blessing for the marriage as he would clearly he the one marrying them off as the Pastor. We got through the vows, and a few hours later at the reception, I asked my brother about his new wife. I asked him how he got my father’s blessing to marry this ‘tramp’ of a woman, her values clearly not aligning to our families strict values. My brother became enraged, and that his love is between him and his wife only, and that our family did not marry his bride; only he did. Fast forward a few months, I decided to reach out more to my parents in order to keep in regular contact. They invited me to a barbecue with all of our close family and fellow church goers, including my brother and his new wife. This barbecue took place in the back yard of my family home. As I was mingling around, mixing with those who i have not seen in years, i smelt an overpowering smell of smoke coming from near the trashcans. I went to go have a look, to see if anything was on fire, to which I saw my brother and his new wife smoking a packet of cigarettes to themselves, laughing and gossiping about how lame everyone is at this barbecue, and how my father is an embarrassment to our community. I was extremely surprised as my Dad would not approve of this behaviour, especially doing it infront of our Church friends. I took both cigarettes, one in each hand, and put the cigarettes out in a complete rage on both of their arms; pressing gently on the skin for a shock factor, and to let them be aware that I heard their previous conversation. Because I have never smoked before, or been around people who have smoked, I didnt expect their arms to burn and swelter as much as they did, his wife needing an ice pack and demanding to go to the emergency room to get her ‘3rd degree burn’ looked at. My brother was absolutely livid; saying that I did this on purpose as I didnt like his wife, even at the wedding and proceeded to say that it was a planned attack, and that he was framed by me in the first place. My brother and his wife left the house in a rage, but the rest of the people at the barbecue praised me for what i did, however my mother was conflicted as she did not want to upset both of her boys. I havent told my father what my brother and his wife said about him, in fears of causing a huge argument. I genuinely didnt mean to cause harm to either of them, so when I was getting praised by my family and church friends, i attempted to diffuse the situation. Now my brother isnt talking to anyone in our family, refusing to go to church, breaking ny mother’s heart. AITA?
Posted Jul 9, 2025, 11:08 PM UTC