Dad Skips Son's High School Graduation for Another Family Event: 'I Will Always Come Second'

The 18-year-old high schooler says his ceremony falls on the same day as an out-of-state award ceremony for his 14-year-old stepsister

An 18-year-old high schooler is igniting viral conversation after sharing that his dad recently "dropped the bomb" that he would be skipping his upcoming graduation to instead go to an event for his stepsister.

In a post shared to Reddit, the anonymous teen writes that he is "graduating high school at the end of this month" and that his dad only recently told him that the ceremony falls on the same day as an out-of-state award ceremony for his 14-year-old stepsister.

Writing that his stepsister told his dad "she really wants him to be there," the teen adds: "[My dad] told me he couldn't possibly make it to both and since his wife and their children together will be going, he needs to be there too."

"He told me he would make it up to me and we could celebrate another time," the teen writes.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Related: Woman Shares Texts from Mother-in-Law About Dinner Plans After Her Mom Dies — and Her Message Goes Viral (Exclusive)

As the teen writes in the post, he still lives with his dad, as his mom died when he was 7. His stepsister, meanwhile, never knew her own biological father, so she's very close with her stepdad and has been "prioritized" in recent years.

"It doesn't always show in the most obvious ways but it can be felt. Father/son time was put on an indefinite hiatus and instead dad told me we needed to include her in our time together but he also spent time with just her for father/daughter time," the teen writes.

He continues: "I brought it up to my dad and he told me I wasn't exactly making an effort to be closer to her so he wanted us all to bond and didn't want me to just focus on my relationship with him."

In the past, the teen writes that his dad usually opts to attend the stepsister's events over his son's, particularly if they're taking place at the same time. "It doesn't matter if mine was known about first, he will still skip my stuff to go to hers," he writes.

The relationship has also had a financial toll, with the teen writing that his dad "took money from my birthday fund to pay" for house repairs as well as gifts for the stepdaughter.

"He didn't get all the money back by the time my birthday came around so instead he bought me a $30 gift card when he had promised me a new monitor and keyboard for my computer (that was a gift from my grandparents)," the teen writes.

After his dad said he wouldn't be attending the graduation, the son writes that he "told him there is no making up for that and he can forget about being included in my life going forward."

"He told me he would make it up to me and I told him I will always come second to his little princess and I'm not going to be okay with that," he continues in his post. "I told him he's discarded me for the last time. Dad begged me to be reasonable but I walked away."

The teen adds that, when his stepmom recommended he skip his own graduation ceremony to attend his stepsister's event, he told her the girl is "not my sister and I do not want to support their family anymore and I will be out of their hair soon."

"She called me selfish and told me I can't deny her daughter a dad," the teen adds.

Related: Mom of TikTok's Bella Brave Responds to Vicious Online Bullying of Daughter: 'Ignite a Change' (Exclusive)

Thousands have since weighed in on the post, with many voicing their support for the high schooler.

"Graduating [high school] is a big milestone," wrote one commenter, adding: "It's creditable your Dad wants to be there for his stepdaughter. He needs to maintain balance though & I feel he should have made time for a once in a lifetime thing for you. I hope you still enjoy your day & many congratulations!"

Others suggested the poster reach out to his grandparents about the troubled relationship, with one writing, "Have you told your grandparents just how bad it is? They might be able to talk some sense into him and salvage something from your relationship with your father."

The original poster wrote that he had reached out to their grandparents, and that, "They're aware and they already tried and it became a fight. There's no salvaging anything after this."

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.