Society has deemed it unacceptable to cut in line. Yet many people seem to lack that common courtesy, and these situations can get ugly. 

However, today’s story ended the opposite. An online user named CitrusSloth shared a story in the r/pettyrevenge subreddit about a personal experience with a fellow customer in a coffee shop line. 

They wanted to do a good deed and pay it forward. Instead, they received an unpleasant reminder that some people don’t seem to care about anyone else but themselves. The story also shows how situations unfold when handled with class.

It never feels good when someone cuts in line

Image credits: Fahmi Fakhrudin / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

The original poster recounted their experience while in line at a coffee shop

Image credits: dolgachov / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)

Image credits: CitrusSloth

There’s a reason why line-cutters feel they can get away with their behavior

Image credits: Wavebreakmedia / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)

The woman in the story supposedly did what many line cutters do: give a reason to justify their actions. And for those who’ve done it a lot and gotten away with it, like writer Estelle Erasmus, there is power in the word “because.” 

In her article in Slate Magazine, Erasmus described the times she cut in line, whether she was stuck in traffic with her husband and simultaneously going into labor or at a Suzanne Somers book signing in Las Vegas. 

She also mentioned a 1978 study in which a researcher gave different justifications for jumping the line at a copy machine. Statements like “because I need to make copies” or “because I’m in a rush” increased the chances of getting through without issue. 

“Chances improved as well when the person asking to cut in line was a woman. The odds also increase if you show that you require minimal effort or less time (I did that, too). That’s why the words ‘I have a quick question’ can work to cut the line at a store or a bank,” she wrote.

The odds aren’t as stacked against one person cutting in line

Image credits: Pressmaster / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)

In her article, Erasmus asserts that she shows politeness whenever cutting in line and offers a good reason for doing so. And overall, she sees it as part of human nature. 

“Isn’t it human nature to use every (legal) tool at our disposal to get ahead in life? Think about it: When you are waiting in a long line for a movie or a restaurant and see a friend higher in the queue, don’t you usually jump in next to them? Most people don’t think twice.”

Erasmus has likely gotten away with line-cutting a few times because the odds of someone speaking out against such actions aren’t as high. According to previous studies, there’s only a 54% chance of a reaction if only one person is involved. 

However, there is that 46% chance of it backfiring, which Erasmus experienced. After failing to sign her daughter up for a big toddler party at a Gymboree, she forced herself in. She ended up getting kicked out and received snide comments from fellow moms. 

But she learned what she described to be an important life lesson: “Moms are tough and will protect their kids’ turf online or offline. That’s a bottom line I can respect.” 

As for the woman in the story, the people around her may have immediately deemed her reasons invalid, which is likely why it ended the way it did.

The author offered more information in the comments

Commenters on the post lauded the OP, as well as the baristas, for serving ‘silence justice’

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