Jaime was only 5 months old when he lost his mother in an accident. At such a young age you don’t even start retaining memories, you’re just eyeballing it. So it is safe to say he did not have any memory of his biological mother. Jaime has an elder sister who made all efforts to take care of him with support from her aunt.
About 4 months later, the siblings’ father brought home his new girlfriend who became their stepmother. The stepmother started loving Jaime like her own son but the sister and stepmother were never on good terms. That is because the stepmom wanted to adopt Jaime and she didn’t want that to happen.
Fast forward over 8 years, and the siblings’ father passes away. That is when the sister, who by then had moved to a different city, contacted her stepmother for legal custody of her brother. The stepmother refused as she wanted to adopt Jaime and felt it was unfair to give her son away after all those years they had spent together.
The matter was taken to the infamous subreddit “Am I The A$$hole?” by Jaime’s sister to know if wanting her brother’s custody is the right thing to do or not.
Scroll down below to read the story!
1. Yet another family drama arrives at AITA for some crucial judgment.
Via u/throwRAb60
2. After their mother passed away, OP and their aunt would take care of young Jaime.
Via u/throwRAb60
3. Just four months after OP’s father brought home her and Jaime’s stepmom and she started taking complete care of Jaime as if he was her own son.
OP, though, didn’t seem to like her stepmom because she assumed her father had been in a relationship with her stepmom during times her mother was still alive.
Via u/throwRAb60
4. The stepmom would keep trying to legally adopt Jaime as her son but OP along with her maternal grandparents kept saying no. So it was decided that the decision will be Jaime’s once he is old enough to make it.
Via u/throwRAb60
5. Eventually OP moved to and now lives with her boyfriend. Daily interaction changed to weekly visits which changed to often playing online games with him.
Via u/throwRAb60
6. After the sudden loss of their father, OP contacted her stepmother to take custody of her brother. The mom refused to give her son away.
OP did mention she is his legal guardian after their father’s death. Let’s see how that plays out.
Via u/throwRAb60
7. Well, the father did say the decision will be Jaie’s to make. OP is now backing from that agreement and wants to file a court case to get Jaime’s custody. The mother wants to do the same…but to adopt him.
Via u/throwRAb60
8. OP gets called an AH by her paternal family who believe she will not be able to take care of him as he is too young and so is she. The matter is now in the hands of AITA community members.
Via u/throwRAb60
OP you are the biggest AH in this story. What OP is planning on doing will ruin Jaime’s life forever. She has zero experience in parenting and may end up doing a terrible job at raising him. The second point is that Jaime spent so much more time with his stepmom than with her sister. The stepmom has probably formed a rock-solid connection with her. And I can bet if they ask him what his decision is, he would choose his stepmother. OP mentioned that she started loving him as her own son and made many attempts to adopt him. If she really does care about her brother’s well-being, she should’ve let her stepmother adopt Jaime.
Lastly, OP was the one who left and moved with her boyfriend. She is the one who reduced the amount of interaction between herself and Jaime. If there is anyone to blame for this, it is OP. Jaime must stay with his stepmother for a better, brighter future. Big cities don’t affirm you will live a great life.
9. A settlement was put forward by OP regarding the meeting schedule.
Via u/throwRAb60
10. OP doesn’t believe in her stepmother’s custody she will be able to meet Jaime the way she used to.
Via u/throwRAb60
Here’s what the internet had to say and why:
11. It would harm him mentally.
Via OnthelookoutNTac
12. She is not viewing the story from her brother’s eyes.
Via Teleporting-Cat
13. I think a woman who raised a child for 8 years and 3 months deserves to adopt him.
Via Rufusfantail2
14. Just because OP lost both her parents doesn’t mean her brother has to go through the same. That would be unjust.
Via Horses77
15. If you want to ruin Jaime’s life then go ahead and take him.
Via GrafEisen
16. Starting over at this age can actually be really difficult but OP has no idea about this. She wants to see it happens and that would be cruel of her.
Via Dhfkrksudjd
I really hope you guys enjoyed this one. Don’t forget to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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