Customer shares heartwarming twist to epic cake fail

"So many layers to this simple story and at the end there was a deeper understanding and a beautiful lesson of kindness," one commenter wrote. 

Let's be honest - cake fails are a guilty pleasure we all secretly love. 

Reading stories online about birthdays being ruined, money being wasted and pissed-off customers... we like, share and comment on other people's misfortune.

But one recent cake fail involving some rather messy handwritten icing had an unsuspecting ending that warmed the hearts of thousands of readers. 

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Image: Facebook

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"I thought people would think it was funny"

Taking to her Facebook page, the woman, Ann, began by explaining what happened to her recently when she went to pick up a birthday cake.

"I asked a bakery-looking employee if she could write on the cake for me," Ann began. "She said she would and after a long time, she came and presented me with this cake."

Ann then shared a photo of the white slab cake, where the employee had written 'Happy Birthday Mandy' on top in purple icing. 

The employee also took the liberty to add a rather creative pink border around the cake.

"I looked her in the eye and said thank you before I even looked at the cake. After looking, I nervously laughed and headed to check out as it didn't really matter to me that it looked so bad- I thought people would think it was funny," she said. 

The heartwarming reason behind the 'cake fail'

The cashiers at the self-checkout didn't think it was so funny though and called a few other cashiers and a manager over to look, even taking pictures.

Ann went on, "To my surprise, after they discussed it, one cashier put her arm on my shoulder and said 'The girl who wrote that has Autism. Thank you for smiling and thanking her- even though she's not supposed to write on cakes, you probably made her day'."

Ann ended her post, which has now racked up 529k likes, 11k comments and 49k shares,  by saying, "I guess the moral of the story is that kindness is important."

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"What a wonderful thing to do"

Cue the collective, 'Awwww'. 

People couldn't get enough of this story, especially how kind and understanding Ann was of the situation, even before she found out the employee had Autism. 

"So many layers to this simple story and shows how common daily transactions can play out... at the end, there was a deeper understanding and a beautiful lesson of kindness. 🙏🤍 Thank you for sharing," one reader said.

Another wrote, "Very sweet. Written with a lot more love and care than someone who does it just for the paycheck."

Then someone else added, "Priceless! I love this story! It's so easy to get caught up in the moment and lose track of what really matters. Thank you for being kind."

"I'm so glad you didn't complain. It will taste the same and you made her day," replied someone else. 

"What a wonderful thing to do, even though you didn't know she had a hidden disability. I hope someone shows the same kindness to my son as he grows up," one mum commented. 

"As a cake decorator, it takes a lot of courage to write on a cake. Most people just say I'm sorry but the cake decorator isn't here. This girl was courageous," a different woman concluded. 

Originally published as Customer shares heartwarming twist to epic cake fail