What’s the best revenge? Sometimes it’s doing absolutely nothing and letting karma take the stage.
That’s exactly what happened when one woman ran into her old high school bully at their 30-year reunion. This bully had once mocked OP online in the cruelest way possible. Years later, karma showed up in the form of a wardrobe malfunction.
A woman at her 30-year high school reunion let her former bully’s gaping zipper go unnoticed, relishing the embarrassment after years of bad blood
Psychologists have long studied the complicated satisfaction people feel when witnessing a person who previously wronged them face embarrassment.
This reaction, known as schadenfreude, is described as pleasure derived from another’s misfortune. While it can sound unkind, research shows that this response is often linked to the human need for fairness and justice. When someone who has hurt us appears to stumble publicly, the mind perceives it as a rebalancing of social dynamics.
According to Dr. Wilco W. van Dijk, professor of social and organizational psychology at Leiden University, people often feel schadenfreude when they believe someone “deserves” their setback.
In his 2015 study, he found that unfair treatment or past hostility increases the likelihood of this reaction because individuals see the incident as restoring justice in a subtle way.
In social contexts like reunions, small misfortunes can become amplified because of the public nature of the setting.
Dr. Richard H. Smith, a professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky, explains that envy and social comparison are also tied to schadenfreude. If someone is seen as arrogant or cruel, observers may subconsciously feel relief or even joy when that person loses face, even in minor ways.
At the same time, experts caution that indulging in another person’s humiliation too deeply can reinforce negative cycles.
The Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley notes that while a brief sense of justice is natural, prolonged enjoyment of another’s misfortune can foster resentment and prevent personal growth. They recommend shifting focus back to self-respect and moving forward, rather than dwelling on the other person’s flaws.
In this case, the individual did not actively cause harm but instead chose to remain silent. Ethically, some might view this as a small breach of social courtesy, often called “girl code,” while others might argue it was an act of non-interference. Importantly, choosing not to intervene may have provided a sense of closure after enduring past bullying.
Here’s what people had to say to OP:
Reddit users cheered her silence, calling it a deserved comeuppance for the bully’s cruelty
This couple shared similar tales of letting wardrobe mishaps slide for rude foes, relishing the karma
One user suggested a cheeky “accidental” public comment to amplify the embarrassment
While this group admitted they’d only warn non-jerks about such blunders
This commenter quoted Sun Tzu, praising the OP’s strategic restraint
Did OP technically break “girl code”? Sure. But given this bully’s history of cruelty, maybe she earned her own public embarrassment. Sometimes revenge doesn’t require plotting, it’s just standing back while karma does its work.
So, was OP wrong for keeping quiet? Or was this the most poetic form of payback?
