A man has struck up an unlikely friendship with his young neighbour who keeps cutting through his garden on his way home from playing out.
He explained how the 14-year-old would "stomp" through his yard in his football boots when returning home, sweaty and exhausted from running around all evening.
Despite asking him to stop using his green space as a shortcut, the boy continued his usual route thinking he'd get away with it. Taking to Reddit, the unnamed man said: "I live with my wife and son and daughter - aged nine and 11 respectively.
"Recently, there has been this kid who comes by our house after playing soccer and either rides his bike or walks over the lawn with his cleats on his way home. It started out as me giving him stern looks whenever I saw him, then it slowly progressed to me asking him to just go around.
"The last time I asked him to stop, he made a point to stomp extra hard and twist his feet into the grass to p*** me off."
To get his own back, the man started blasting him with water from the garden hose, hoping it would deter the teen from stomping through his garden.
But his 'revenge' didn't quite work out as planned.
"The first time I sprayed him with the hose he ran off, but then for some reason he just started standing there while I hose him like he enjoys it," the 37-year-old added.
"It's now progressed to me sitting on my lawn chair pointing my hose at him, and him just staring at me while he does so. Sometimes we even make small talk.
"It started off as a really bitter relationship - but I've actually gotten to know the kid quite well.
"We talk for maybe 15 to 20 minutes every day, and he doesn't seem to mind being hosed down after sweating hard playing soccer.
"He comes by daily and we just shoot the s*** while I hose him and he stands there for a bit.
"My wife told me I need to stop, even after I explained it to her she said I'm making us look like childish idiots.
"I guess I could stop, but honestly it's really funny waiting for him to come by and I see no harm in it."
Commenting on his post, one user said: "This is hilarious. I was going to say you were the a***hole and get a fence, but I see nothing wrong with what’s going on now."
Another user added: "Sometimes you just have to spray the hate away."
A third user said: "Get another chair, ask the kid to come sit with you. That kid would rather get hosed down by a stranger than go home, something's up."
One more user added: "The kid is obviously deprived of attention and is weirdly getting something bizarrely meaningful from this incredibly strange relationship."
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