Sugarphly, a married mother and content creator from the US, has come forward with an emotional video detailing the abrupt end of a 23-year friendship. One that unraveled over something as simple as a pair of high-waisted American Eagle “mom shorts.”
The TikTok video, posted on July 30, struck a chord with viewers who have dealt with similar situations and has since gone viral, amassing more than 600,000 views.
In it, Sugar is visibly shaken as she recounts the painful phone call that made her realize the friendship might be over for good. A call where her friend accused her of “traumatizing her son.”
“23 years,” she said, trying to steady her voice. “23 years of being best friends, out the window. Why? These shorts.”
A mother went viral after recounting the bizarre accusation that led to the end of a 23-year-old friendship over a pair of shorts
Image credits: originalsugarphly
Just days earlier, Sugar had flown to Las Vegas to help her best friend prepare for a housewarming party. She spent the weekend organizing, celebrating, and even going back-to-school shopping with her friend’s two sons, aged 14 and 17.
There were no arguments or signs of tension. Everything seemed to be going well.
Image credits: Jordan González/unsplash.com (Not the actual photo)
Sugar genuinely believed the trip had been a success, filled with laughter, but that illusion was shattered just a few days later, when an unexpected phone call flipped the entire friendship on its head.
“She calls me, we’re having a normal conversation,” Sugar explained.
“And then all of a sudden, she mentions that her boys were uncomfortable… Especially the younger one.”
Image credits: originalsugarphly
According to her friend, the cause of the “discomfort” was the length of Sugarphly’s shorts, which allegedly made the 14-year-old “aware of his surroundings in a way he wasn’t prepared for.”
“She said, ‘Your shorts were so short. They were inappropriate, and you made them uncomfortable. You could see your whole backside hanging out!’”
Image credits: originalsugarphly
Stunned at her friend’s accusation, Sugar tried to seek reassurance from viewers by showing the back of the shorts on camera.
“It’s covered. They’re mom shorts,” she said, turning to reveal that the high-waisted shorts offered full coverage in both the front and back.
The friend accused Sugar of making her 14-year-old son feel “uncomfortable” due to the allegedly revealing nature of her “mom shorts”
Image credits: originalsugarphly
Sugar pushed back, adding that no one expressed “discomfort” during the trip, and that she would’ve gladly changed if that had been the case.
“I said, ‘They’re not inappropriate. I feel they are appropriate. I feel they are how I normally dress.’”
Image credits: originalsugarphly
Her friend, however, insisted the damage was done. She claimed the 14-year-old would now “need therapy” to deal with what he had seen: a claim that struck many as overblown and needlessly dramatic.
At worst, the boy had a typical adolescent reaction to seeing a woman in shorts, something viewers considered neither weird nor traumatic by any reasonable standard.
For the content creator, the accusation felt even more unfair considering where her friend lives, a city where women often wear clothing far more revealing than her “mom shorts.”
“You live in Vegas,” Sugar countered. “You’re telling me they don’t see this?”
Sugar said her friend had grown accustomed to criticizing her appearance and habits
Image credits: originalsugarphly
The real breaking point was more than the outfit. It was the fact that, for the first time in 23 years, Sugar pushed back instead of staying silent.
For years, her friend had made a habit of criticizing Sugar’s appearance whenever life felt unfair, using her as an outlet for frustrations she couldn’t control.
Faux freckles were called “disgusting,” pool parties were branded “trashy,” and her clothing choices became a recurring target.
Image credits: originalsugarphly
“I was upset enough that I raised my voice at her,” she confessed. “That’s never happened before.”
She explained the discussion was a shift in their dynamic that marked something deeper. She realized that the friendship had long stopped being balanced.
Sugar said she had always made room for her friend’s emotions, walked on eggshells during disagreements, and let passive-aggressive comments slide. But this time, the accusation felt too absurd and too undeserved to ignore.
Image credits: originalsugarphly
After the call ended, she broke down in tears.
“I think that friendship has just gotten to a place where it’s not healthy anymore,” she said. “Our lives are just on very different paths, and maybe that doesn’t match right now.”
Even so, she didn’t completely close the door.
“Hopefully someday in the future we can be friends again. But right now, I think we just… We need to take a break.”
“Toxic jealousy”: Viewers argued the friendship ended for reasons other than the shorts
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