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Woman Got Engaged, But Within Minutes Her Best Friend Made It Look Like She Was Celebrating Alone
Woman Got Engaged, But Within Minutes Her Best Friend Made It Look Like She Was Celebrating Alone
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Woman Got Engaged, But Within Minutes Her Best Friend Made It Look Like She Was Celebrating Alone

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Everyone says your engagement is supposed to be all about you and your partner, but what happens when your best friend makes it all about them instead?

Today’s Original Poster (OP) found herself facing this exact dilemma after what should have been a magical, drama-free proposal turned into an Instagram situation she never saw coming. While she was still basking in the glow of being newly engaged, her best friend posted a photo from the moment, and cropped out the groom-to-be.

More info: Reddit

RELATED:

    There’s something deeply jarring about seeing a photo of one of the biggest moments of your life, and realizing someone edited the love of your life right out of it

    Woman holds heart balloon while man presents engagement ring, symbolizing a joyful proposal moment.

    Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

    The author was on a trip with her close friends and boyfriend when he proposed to her

    Woman untags herself from best friend's IG post after fiancé cropped out of engagement photo.

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    Engagement proposal at vineyard, captured at sunset; woman later untagged from friend’s IG post.

    Text saying, "Then this dude posts it on his IG... but he crops my fiancé out. Like bro, what?" about engagement pic edit.

    Image credits: ConfidentZara

    Woman with camera reviews engagement photos, focus on friendship dynamic.

    Image credits: wavebreakmedia_micro / Freepik (not the actual photo)

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    Her best friend took a really nice picture of the proposal, but posted only the picture of her, with her now-fiancé cropped out and no allusion to an engagement

    Text expresses frustration about a best friend cropping out a fiancé from an engagement picture on Instagram.

    Text conversation about a woman's engagement photo cropped by her guy friend, leading to her untagging herself.

    Text reading, "So I just untagged myself. Didn’t make a scene. Just moved on," referencing social media untagging.

    Image credits: ConfidentZara

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    Man in kitchen using tablet, wearing striped sweater, related to engagement pic post issue on Instagram.

    Image credits: Wavebreak Media / Freepik (not the actual photo)

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    She thought it was strange, so she reached out to the best friend and asked him why he did that, to which he responded that he just thought she looked really good

    Text about a woman and her best friend sharing cryptic posts after an engagement photo incident.

    Text from a woman discussing being untagged in a friend's IG post after fiancé was cropped from engagement photo.

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    Text "So yeah. All that. AITAH?" related to woman untagging from friend’s IG post.

    Image credits: ConfidentZara

    She untagged herself from the post and moved on until she noticed that the best friend started throwing shade at her on his stories

    The OP had gone on a trip with a close-knit group of friends, including her best friend who she had been tight with since college. It was all good vibes until her boyfriend, now fiancé, proposed to her in a quiet moment at sunset. It was private, sweet, and emotional. Her best friend was right there, taking pictures of the proposal, and one of them came out stunning.

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    Not long after, the best friend posted that same photo, but he cropped out the fiancé entirely. It was just the OP in the picture, as if she’d been doing a solo shoot in the vineyard. There was no caption that indicated an engagement, and no tag for her partner. Just a vague line that stated that she was glowing.

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    She then messaged her best friend to say it felt a little weird, as it was an engagement photo. However, he brushed it off, saying she looked so good in it, he just had to post. Rather than blowing it up, she simply untagged herself and left it at that. Soon after, the best friend started posting cryptic, moody stories directed at her.

    Now, their mutual friends are taking sides. Some told the OP she was being too sensitive and that the best friend was just trying to support her, while others said it’s totally understandable for her to feel uncomfortable because her engagement photo got reframed as his content drop.

    Woman looking at phone with a confused expression, outdoors, wearing a beige blazer, related to engagement photo issue.

    Image credits: benzoix / Freepik (not the actual photo)

    According to Verywell Mind, digital spaces demand the same level of etiquette as real-life interactions, and sometimes even more. Online actions, once posted, tend to leave lasting impressions. They also highlight key principles when it comes to sharing pictures online which include sharing with discretion, not excluding others, and respecting people’s privacy.

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    In this story, the best friend’s decision to crop out the fiancé and post the image without context or congratulations violates all three, and Psych Central even goes as far as referring to his actions as toxic.

    They stated that the friend centering himself in the OP’s milestone, disregarding both emotional boundaries and digital respect, undermining special moments and milestones, and using passive-aggressive tactics to retaliate or manipulate are red flags.

    Life Hack explains that passive-aggressive behavior often hides behind seemingly harmless actions, but these are intentional tactics used to express resentment without open communication, which can seriously damage relationships. They list some common forms of passive-aggression which include sarcasm, subtle sabotage, withholding inclusion, backhanded compliments, sulking, and throwing shade online.

    Netizens were in support of the OP, with most people agreeing that her reaction was completely justified. They pointed out how disrespectful it was to crop out the fiancé, calling the move disrespectful. A recurring theme in the responses was that the best friend clearly has romantic feelings for her, despite the “just friends” label.

    What do you think about this situation? What would you do if a friend pulled this move at your engagement? Would you confront them or just cut ties quietly? We would love to hear your thoughts!

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    Netizens declared she wasn’t wrong for untagging herself from the post, but pointed out that there’s a high chance her best friend of many years is in love with her

    Comments discussing cropping out fiancé from engagement photo on Instagram.

    Woman untagged from friend's post after fiancé cropped from engagement picture, text exchange about the incident.

    Discussion about a woman untagging herself due to her fiancé being cropped from an engagement photo on Instagram.

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    Text exchange discussing woman untagging from IG post after friend crops fiancé from engagement pic.

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    Text comment about a woman's best friend disrespecting her fiancé by cropping him out of an engagement photo.

    Text comment about a woman untagging herself from her friend's post after he crops out her fiancé from engagement pic.

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    Comment about a woman untagging from a friend's post after fiancé cropped from engagement pic.

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    Relationship advice comment about untagging from friend's IG post.

    Comment about a woman untagging herself after guy friend cropped fiancé from engagement pic.

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    Comment reading, "If it makes you feel weird; then it’s probably weird," relating to woman untagging from IG post.

    Text comment criticizing a cropped engagement photo on Instagram.

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    Poll Question

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    Ifeoluwa Adesina

    Ifeoluwa Adesina

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

    Read more »

    I'm a writer and bookworm (eyes glued to an e-book, more accurately) who happens to have a suspiciously deep knowledge about pop culture. When I'm not writing, I can most likely be found taking yet another online quiz to find out which soda matches my personality.

    Read less »
    Ifeoluwa Adesina

    Ifeoluwa Adesina

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

    I'm a writer and bookworm (eyes glued to an e-book, more accurately) who happens to have a suspiciously deep knowledge about pop culture. When I'm not writing, I can most likely be found taking yet another online quiz to find out which soda matches my personality.

    What do you think ?
    Wang Zhuang
    Community Member
    7 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah, there's really no excuse for dude to crop out the fiance. And when OP questioned him about it, his response was "You looked so good in it, I just had to post"? I know we're only getting one side of the story, but I agree with the other posters that this gives off a vibe of the bf having some sort of crush on OP. If he was her best friend, she could have tried to have a more in-depth conversation about his reasoning, but even so, she's definitely NTA here. And her friends' defenses of him are lame.

    Paul C
    Community Member
    7 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The best response might well have been to post the full photo with the fiancé. It would have shown whoever looked at both just how creepy the ex-best friend really is. And absolutely nothing he could blame OP for - posting her own engagement photo is a natural thing to do.

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    JB
    Community Member
    7 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I doubt they’ll bother, but my personal opinion is any app that supports the ability to “tag” others should also support the ability to send a notification to the tagged person, BEFORE POSTING, for them to approve their image being used. If they don’t approve, then the poster gets a notification that their friend/contact has denied use of their image and it DOESN’T get posted. One of the things I loathe about social media is the entitlement many feel to publicly post whatever pictures they want of whoever they want. I’m generally not a fan of excessive legislation but feel it’s time we legally recognized that one’s picture is an integral part of one’s identity (precedent being that it’s required on most forms of government identification). Therefore, permission should be required, not assumed.

    Load More Comments
    Wang Zhuang
    Community Member
    7 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah, there's really no excuse for dude to crop out the fiance. And when OP questioned him about it, his response was "You looked so good in it, I just had to post"? I know we're only getting one side of the story, but I agree with the other posters that this gives off a vibe of the bf having some sort of crush on OP. If he was her best friend, she could have tried to have a more in-depth conversation about his reasoning, but even so, she's definitely NTA here. And her friends' defenses of him are lame.

    Paul C
    Community Member
    7 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The best response might well have been to post the full photo with the fiancé. It would have shown whoever looked at both just how creepy the ex-best friend really is. And absolutely nothing he could blame OP for - posting her own engagement photo is a natural thing to do.

    ADVERTISEMENT
    JB
    Community Member
    7 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I doubt they’ll bother, but my personal opinion is any app that supports the ability to “tag” others should also support the ability to send a notification to the tagged person, BEFORE POSTING, for them to approve their image being used. If they don’t approve, then the poster gets a notification that their friend/contact has denied use of their image and it DOESN’T get posted. One of the things I loathe about social media is the entitlement many feel to publicly post whatever pictures they want of whoever they want. I’m generally not a fan of excessive legislation but feel it’s time we legally recognized that one’s picture is an integral part of one’s identity (precedent being that it’s required on most forms of government identification). Therefore, permission should be required, not assumed.

    Load More Comments
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