How a $200 Guitar Became the Ultimate Payback: One Man’s Hilarious Encounter with His Junior High Bully
We all dream of that perfect moment when karma finally catches up to the people who wronged us, especially those childhood bullies who left scars we remember decades later. But what if, instead of a dramatic showdown, your moment of retribution involved a sweet guitar, a panicked bully, and an ending worthy of a sitcom? Strap in, because today’s tale from Reddit’s r/PettyRevenge community delivers exactly that—and then some.
The Window Incident: 1980s Schoolyard Terror
Let’s set the scene: It’s the 1980s, and our hero—Reddit user u/aluminumnek—was just trying to wave to a girl he liked from his second-story classroom window. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a classmate he had never even spoken to (let’s call him Leon, because…well, that’s his name) snuck up, grabbed him by the belt, and attempted to shove him out the window. Yes, really.
Imagine: You’re halfway out a window, staring at the bushes and the ground below, desperately clinging to the frame while your would-be assailant tries to muscle you out. No teacher intervenes, no students help, and the event passes with a cloud of anxiety that no one acknowledges. The school? Silent. Parents? Uninformed. The only adult to address the incident was Leon’s aunt, a science teacher, who assured u/aluminumnek that Leon would be shipped off to another school and offered a sympathetic ear.
Reflecting on this, several commenters pointed out how the times have changed (or haven’t). As u/kwynot64 put it, “Remember times were VERY different in the '80's, so schools were not so quick to include the family unless it was a tragedy.” Others, like u/night_noche, shared their own harrowing stories of unchecked bullying in an era when “parents were not kept in the loop.” The echoes of those silent classrooms still ring in many readers’ ears.
Fast Forward: The Great Guitar Encounter
Fifteen years later, fate decides to have a little fun. Our protagonist, now an adult, is on the hunt for a Gibson SG guitar—and finds a killer deal: $200 for a legit SG in his hometown. He heads over to the seller’s place, makes small talk, and soon discovers they went to the same schools. The more they chat, the more the pieces fall into place—until the seller realizes he’s face-to-face with the very person he once tried to send flying out a window.
Cue the panic. Leon, the former bully, turns “pale and nervous,” starts making excuses, and insists he has to leave immediately. Our hero, cool as can be, picks up the guitar and delivers the line we all wish we’d thought of: “I’m taking this guitar with me as payment for your antics.” Leon mutters, agrees, and proceeds to “scuttle off into the night like a crab” (a description the community absolutely loved), peeling out of the parking lot as if haunted by the ghosts of bullies past.
u/OriginalIronDan couldn’t resist: “Big mistake. Dude owes you a dozen sets of strings, too.” Meanwhile, u/weirdal1968 mused about whether Leon was on parole or just finally feeling the weight of his misdeeds—“Giving you that Gibson did pay off an old debt…”
Justice Served…With a Side of Laughter
What makes this petty revenge so satisfying isn’t just the poetic justice—it’s the sheer awkwardness of the encounter. Commenters were quick to debate the ethics (was it theft? Was it deserved?), but as u/Mystery-Ess challenged, “So you just admitted that you stole his guitar?” u/aluminumnek [OP] fired back: “He didn’t object. Fair compensation for almost killing me…Let me have my win. Why should he have nice things for being a piece of [expletive]? Call it retribution.”
Many readers reflected on the power of guilt. As u/Normanated speculated, “Looks to me like a deer in the headlights scenario. He realised who you were and didn't know how to react…Given that he could have potentially killed you, I hope he is remorseful, it appears to me that he could be.” The consensus? Sometimes, karma doesn’t need a grand gesture—just an unexpected reunion and a little poetic payback.
And the cherry on top? u/aluminumnek still plays that guitar in his noise rock band, a tangible reminder that sometimes, bullies don’t get the last word (or chord).
Lessons Learned from the Revenge Symphony
This story struck a chord (pun very much intended) with readers who’d endured their own schoolyard traumas. Some saw it as the universe balancing the scales, while others lamented the lack of adult intervention back in the day. Yet, almost everyone agreed that a little bit of poetic justice—served decades later—can be sweet, cathartic, and, above all, hilarious.
As u/BayAreaPupMom summarized, “Somebody must have seen what he did. And I'm guessing that wasn't a first offense. Apparently, he learned his lesson.”
And for anyone doubting the power of small wins, remember: closure doesn’t always come in grand gestures. Sometimes, it’s a $200 Gibson SG and the sight of your childhood tormentor “scuttling off into the night like a crab.”
Final Chord: What’s Your Revenge Anthem?
What would you do if fate handed you a shot at poetic justice? Would you take the guitar and run, or forgive and forget? Share your thoughts—and your own tales of karma—in the comments below. And to anyone still haunted by old bullies: remember, you just might get your payback when you least expect it. And if you do, may it come with six strings and a great story to tell.
Rock on, and may your enemies forever scuttle into the night.
Original Reddit Post: Got revenge on a school bully