Is AUTHOR wrong in the post ? POST : Should say, not intentionally. My family talks shit a lot but I’m on the gentler side of shit talking. None of my nephews or nieces really have a mother figure, and I just grew up being that for them. It doesn’t feel right to talk shit back, ya feel?

But anyway, one of my nephews is going through a rebellious phase where he hates his dad, and me. But it’s a bit difficult for me to handle because as much as I try to fill the female role in his life, I’m not his bio mom. I’ve got no obligation to deal with him lashing out, and as a laid back (if grumpy) woman in my early 20s I don’t feel inclined to. Normally if he starts talking shit, I leave it up to his dad to deal with him, and just mentally check out. But he gets real cocky sometimes and I’ll tickle him or something equally childish until he apologizes. (I.e poking, wet willies, just kid shit that annoys tf out of him cause he’s “too mature”)

Now, tonight he happened to be playing fortnite my little brother (18), my other nephew (12), and my little brothers school friend (17). My brother and other nephew were teasing this nephew, while I was zoning out and scrolling though Reddit, when all of a sudden my nephew starts talking shit to me for no damn reason. He compared me to an overweight character who has a romantic relationship with a cat in the abridged version of a certain 90s anime. I got irritated and knew he was just showing off for my brothers friend, so I dragged him onto their mattress in the living room and tickled tf out of him and said “ya coulda just left me out of it!!!”

This is where my little brother and other nephew start teasing and saying “that’s what you get for always talking shit!!!” And all of a sudden my nephews laughing starts turning to crying and he just curls up and cries, presumably out of embarrassment. I didn’t know what to do to handle the situation, so I just got up and told the other two to leave him alone now, but I still feel like a douche.

AITA? I really feel like the asshole.