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Redditor Balks After Friend Insists They Spilt Dental Bill After Son Cracks His Tooth At Their House

A smiling boy being examined at the dentist
PeterDazeley/GettyImages

Kids can’t help but get into everything.

That’s why parents try to child-proof every square inch of a home.

But every environment outside the home can become an episode of “The Hunger Games.”

Kids love to search and find.

They’re especially curious when food is involved.

Case in point…

Redditor macafail wanted to discuss their experience and get some feedback. So naturally, they came to visit the “Am I The A**hole” (AITA) subReddit.

They asked:

“AITA for refusing the pay for dental fees after a kid broke his teeth on a macadamia nut?”

The Original Poster (OP) explained:

“My friend 39 F[emale] June brought her 8-year-old son Steven over to my house today.”

“June and I were just chatting over a cup of tea when there was a scream from the kitchen, and we rushed to find that Steven had tried to eat a whole macadamia nut with the shell.”

“For context, the nut is a white nut surrounded by the hardest and most smooth chocolate-looking shell you’ve ever seen.”

“He’d obviously thought it was chocolate and tried to eat it from a closed Tupperware Container on the kitchen island.”

“I was going to crack them with a hammer later.”

“My friend first admonished Steven for eating something obviously not meant for him and took him to emergency dental where she later learned he had cracked one of his molars, and it was apparently quite bad.”

“Apparently, as it’s still his first set of teeth, they will just be pulling it out, but she wants me to pay for at least half as it was my macadamia, and it was on the kitchen island and accessible.”

The OP was left to wonder:

“If I don’t, AITA?”

Redditors shared their thoughts on this matter and weighed some options to the question AITA:

  • NTA – Not The A**hole
  • YTA – You’re The A**hole
  • NAH – No A**holes Here
  • ESH – Everyone Sucks Here

Many Redditors declared OP was NOT the A**hole.

“He had to get a closed container off the island, open it, and take out the nut.”

“It wasn’t just out there for the taking.”

“Tuff s**t for his mum.”

“But her insurance should cover it.”

“If you really like her, you might offer to help pay if you can afford it?”

“Keep us updated.” ~ Foreign-Yesterday-89

“NTA. Her kid, her responsibility.”

“You didn’t hand him the nut.”

“He took it by himself.”

“This isn’t on you.”

“What if he opened your refrigerator and ate something he was allergic to?”

“Would that be your fault or responsibility? I say no.” ~ Vandreeson

“You giving permission means he had to ask.”

“NTA, and don’t get guilted into paying that bill.” ~ sophieornotsophie_

“As I said in my other reply, he needs to learn to ask every time.”

“Hopefully, this painful lesson will teach him the importance of asking your host before you start eating their unknown foods.”

“If anything it’s for his own safety so that he doesn’t try to consume anything else improperly.”

“Maybe take the time with his mom to help introduce him to other culinary treats that can bite back and that some food requires ‘instructions’ and preparation before they’re safe.”

“He sounds like he’s mostly a good kid, just a bit adventurous with food, not necessarily a bad thing.”

“Definitely better than being too picky.”

“he just needs to learn that it’s important to ask not just for manners sake but because food can dangerous.” ~ Old-Adhesiveness-342

“In my experience with kid’s teeth between myself and my mom’s friends, for that molar to crack it most likely already had a weakness like a cavity that was being watched or a hairline fracture from a previous fall or sport or something.”

“For your own self to bite something and it crack there’s almost always a flaw in the tooth because there’s enough nerves in the tooth and jaw for you to immediately sense the pressure/pain and reflexively abort.”

“To crack a perfect, flawless molar, you usually need a fall, an accident, a hit to the face, an undercut to the jaw, etc.”

“Something where the force was outside of your physical control.”

“I’m saying you should feel even less guilty because odds are high that tooth was on borrowed time already and was going to break somewhere, sometime.” ~ vwscienceandart

“NTA. Why wasn’t she supervising her child?”

“Why didn’t she teach her child not to eat random things he picks up in other people’s houses?”

“Also, he’s f**king 8.”

“That molar is gonna fall out anyway, and his adult teeth will grow in to replace it.” ~ SassyWookie

OP responded…

“He’s unfortunately usually pretty smart and would be reading or be on the iPad chilling close by while his mum and I caught up with one another.”

“He’s been coming over since he was five and has always been well-behaved.”

“I also mentioned in another reply I often leave finished baked goods on the kitchen island to cool.”

“But I would still give permission as to ‘yes Steven, you can take a cookie,’ etc.”

OP continued…

“Funny little anecdote about test bites.”

“The year before last was my grandpa’s last Christmas.”

“On Christmas Eve, we had the table nicely decorated, and there were some chocolate balls on the table, and they were wrapped with colored foil.”

“Grandpa, being himself, was chatting with someone and didn’t look what he was doing as he popped one of the red foil-covered chocolate balls in his mouth, and then started chewing.”

“The look of disgust on that man’s face was pure comedy gold.”

“For the next minute or so, he spat out small balls of foil.”

“He also spent the rest of the event distrusting all chocolates.”

“I wish I had a video or photo of that. It was truly hilarious.” ~ QuirkyMeerkat

“Yeah, he should be asking the host if he can try the food out on the counter.”

“I think that’s a part that most people miss in-house training their kids.”

“It’s fine that kid wants to try yummy looking food, awesome in fact that they aren’t picky eaters, so you don’t want to quash that, but you do want them to learn to ask.”

“A simple ‘Hey, Missus Mom’s Friend, can I have one of those things in the Tupperware on the counter? They look really good!'”

“Then kiddo learns ‘Those are nuts, you have the crack them, not everything that looks like chocolate is chocolate.'” ~ Old-Adhesiveness-342

“Not the a**hole.”

“It was in a sealed container in someone else’s house.”

“If you’d handed him the nut and said, ‘Here ya go champ, knock yourself out!'”

“Things would’ve been different, but he literally went into somebody else’s stuff and hurt himself doing it.”

“Your friend was also THERE – so it’s not like you were the one who should’ve been supervising the kid.”

“This is on the mum, 100%.”

“Her kid didn’t have the manners not to go into your stuff (I would’ve been in SO much trouble if I did what he did, and yes I knew MUCH better than to do that at 8 years old, that’s not too young to be aware of manners, and right and wrong).”

“And then to add insult to injury she tries to get you to share the blame because the consequences are financially inconvenient, which is cheeky as hell.” ~ AIM9MaxG

“NTA. I’m sure the cost is unexpected for her but this is entirely her child’s fault.”

“Would she hold you liable if he’d tried to eat the kitchen counter?”

“At what point is she responsible for overseeing her child?”

“’Thank goodness he’s young enough that he would have lost this tooth anyway. It’s too bad that there will be an associated cost, but since I wasn’t babysitting, I am not responsible and won’t be contributing financially. I hope he had a speedy recovery.’”

“End of friendship? Maybe.”

“But if so, that’s on June.” ~ FlyingDutchLady

“Your ‘friend’ is being ridiculous.”

“She let her kid run around your house unsupervised, didn’t teach him manners (8 isn’t too young to know you’re not supposed to take stuff that isn’t yours or specifically offered to you, regardless of how ‘accessible’ it is) and now expects you to pay for the consequences?”

“Ask her this: if he had broken a tooth biting into a nut that he stole in a supermarket, would she ask the supermarket to pay for it?”

“Somehow I doubt it.”

“NTA, your friend is.”

“I hope you show her this post and the answers.” ~ Helpful_Hour1984

“NTA. Though they were at your home, a kid is still under his mother’s responsibility.”

“The Tupperware was closed, it is enough to say that it was not ‘accessible.'”

“The fact that he opened it just shows the kid’s bad behavior and the mother’s carelessness.”

“Sorry for the kid, but opening boxes in people’s homes is quite never a good idea.”  ~ AikaNemo

“NTA. I wouldn’t have her over any longer.”

“If you want to maintain the friendship, meet for coffee or meals out.”

“The fact that’s she trying to shift blame is concerning.”

“This is the kind of accident which sometimes happens with kids.”

“If anything, this could be blamed on her for not supervising her kid properly.”

“You’re kind not to point that out.”

“She’s put you on notice that she will expect payment for accidents she and her kids cause.”

“Combined with her lack of supervision, she’s a liability if you have her in your home.”

“And if you go only to her home, lack of reciprocation becomes an issue.”

“Also, don’t ever go near a pool or ocean or other hazard with her and her kid.” ~ exscapegoat

“NTA. Don’t like it? Watch your damn kids.”

“Teach ’em not to eat random s**t lying around.”

“An 8-year-old is too old to randomly stuff things into your mouth.” ~ Cat1832

“NTA. The kid did something he wasn’t supposed to. That’s on bad parenting, not you.” ~ samk2487

Well, OP, Reddit is with you.

It’s not unreasonable to expect people, including children, to ask before they eat things in your home.

And just because she’s visiting a friend doesn’t mean June isn’t responsible for still watching her child.

You did nothing wrong.