[Update] Family left me (18M) when they thought I wasn’t my dad’s son but now they want to get back in touch

A Reddit user who was abandoned by his father and siblings due to a faulty DNA test decided to cut ties for good. Despite pressure from family to reconcile, he stood firm, with his grandfather—his one true supporter—protecting him. When his mother tried to guilt-trip them, his grandfather shut her down, proving that real family isn’t about blood; it’s about loyalty. Read the original story below…

‘ [Update] Family left me (18M) when they thought I wasn’t my dad’s son but now they want to get back in touch’

This OP: Family left me (18M) when they thought I wasn’t my dad’s son but now they want to get back in touch

I’ve been really annoyed lately cause a lot of people around me keep saying I’m a crazy teen and I’ll regret it. But grandpa made a point that I need to stop trying to decide how I’ll feel in the future. Cause truth is you can never know. You have to make decisions now, based on feelings and info you have now. Not based on feelings and info you MIGHT have later.

Right now, I´m disgusted by dad and brother. I want nothing to do with them. I don’t trust them. And I even think there is a chance they might be doing this (reaching out) just for optics and money. If my feelings change, I will deal with that when they do. Cross the bridge when I get to it and all.

I wasn’t really gonna post an update on this, cause I don’t see the point. My story is kindda over. But something happened yesterday and I wanted to share. So I decided to stand by my “f**k no, I don’t wanna talk to them”. I’ll be moving to another city soon and decided to change my number.

Grandpa is the only one who will be having the new one, I asked him not to share and I know he wont. He is a retired cop, so he’s really badass and has zero patience for b**lshit, my new number is safe. He called my mom and told her that, from now on, if anyone wanted to reach me, they’d have to go through him.

So mom showed up at his place (I’ve been living with him for a while) and tries to talk to me, but grandpa says she has to talk to him first, so he can DECIDE whether she is allowed to talk to me or not. LOOOOL so mom goes INSANE, and starts telling him that it’s none of his business and that this is between me and my dad,

so grandpa goes something like “if anybody shows up at my lawn to disturb the boy, I’ll get the cops, a restraining order and a shotgun”. It goes on for a while until mom says I’m not the only family grandpa has, and that by doing this, grandpa is pushing everyone away and splitting the family, he has other grandchildren,

why is he picking just the one, and so on… so grandpa f**king laughs and tell her that through no fault of his, this family blew up long ago, and everyone just grabbed a piece of what was left and ran for it. He looks at me and says I’m his piece, so he’s not letting go and f**k it.

I was feeling like laughing up to this point cause mom was going crazy and all, but when he f**king said that, I broke. Mom left after a while and I just hugged my old man like life depended on it, and he just said something like “enough now, no need for that, I’m your family, family doesn’t leave. You remember that when you have one of your own”, and I f**king will..

Here’s the input from the Reddit crowd:

Meeseeks82 −  Your grandpa is OG. Spend every second you can with that man. And, even with everything that’s happened, you should feel so happy and proud that you have him. Good luck dude.

SXThree −  Your GPA saying that you’re the piece he is keeping is f**king awesome. I’m glad you found a path and that you kept the best family member in your life👍

[Reddit User] −  Your grandpa is not only a badass, he is incredibly wise. You are lucky to be his piece.

thewharfartscenter_ −  Your grandpa is 100% right. I’m 36 and had something similar happen to me at 17-18. I never forgave my stepfather and when he died, I felt NO guilt or remorse. I now only talk to one of my brothers and my mother gets one word text replies when and if I feel like replying.

Those assholes might be related to you, but you pick your family and it sounds like grandpa has his s**t straight. You do what is right for YOU. Do not spend another second trying to get love from people who only want to make up because they look bad. They don’t feel bad for what they did to you, they feel bad that they look bad, and I say f**k them.

Pascalle112 −  Beautiful update. Someone was cutting onions when I read it! One slightly m**bid thing, make sure your grandpa has an iron clad will, power of attorney and whatever you need to make health and well-being decisions when that time comes.

People like the family you’ve spoken about harbor resentment and it festers. It often comes out when someone is too ill or old to defend themselves. When the time comes you want to have everything in order and the power to protect your Grandpa just like he’s protected you.

wtfthecanuck −  Listen, you have a great grandpa, who is 100% on your side and who will protect you. That is a great, great good deal. I’d shake his hand if I could.
Do what you need to for yourself. You say the younger brother is cool.you can work with that when your life is in good order. No need to rush things.

Bangbangsmashsmash −  This is by far the most satisfactory, awesome update I have ever heard!! Your grandpa is THE MAN!! I love that, don’t make decisions based on potential future feelings, decide based on now. I’m so glad you’ve got your old man!! What a great blessing

DragonToothGarden −  OP, can you tell your grandpa that this 45-year old woman reading your post finds his insights so refreshing and true, and I wish I had had a family member like him to have shared his insight and stood up for me during my younger years in my fucked up family.

Your grandfather is one bad mofo’. He’s a wise man and he loves you. You made your decision and it sounds like the healthiest, best decision. I never understood people who say “you must be close/forgive/hang out with family members even if they beat the s**t out of you or abused you just because they are ffammmmmily! Or what if you regret it?!”

Only thing I could imagine regretting would be throwing away my self-respect by letting abusers back into my life. As your grandpa said, make healthy decisions for your life right now. You never know what will happen in the future, but you’ll be well-equipped to deal with it then. Its never healthy to have a mean, abusive or manipulative person in your life, family or otherwise.

lizzie_lovegood −  My mom straight up left me at a movie theater when I was 13 because I was gay and I wouldn’t tell her what I had said about her in therapy. Been told for the past 8 years that I should forgive her for it and for her turning her entire side of the family against it. I won’t, and I don’t regret it, 7 years after cutting her out. Good luck, OP. I believe in you.

[Reddit User] −  You know what’s worse than no dad? A s**t dad. F**k him. Stand your ground and find a different path to manhood, he has nothing worth learning.
Your grandpa is a f**king don. You’ve got all you need.

Loyalty speaks louder than DNA. Sometimes, the real family is the one that stands by you when everything falls apart. Would you forgive and reconnect, or would you walk away for good? Share your thoughts.