A boyfriend's decision to leave his girlfriend behind to go on a solo trip to celebrate his 40th birthday has received overwhelming support online.
On Reddit's popular confession forum Am I The A**hole, the 39-year-old admitted that his main reason for ditching his girlfriend and traveling alone was because she couldn't afford to come.
He explained that he and his 33-year-old partner started dating just three months ago. Meanwhile, his desire to take an extended break from work, for himself, has been brewing for some time.
“Next year I will be 40 years old. And I've never taken a real vacation. I've extended work trips to do something fun where I am. I have traveled to visit friends or family. Always just for a long weekend (never more than 3 days total),” she wrote.
The Redditor said he wanted to take a week-long trip “for recreational purposes” to celebrate his upcoming birthday and wanted the trip to be a seven-day international affair. Having saved money since he was in his early twenties, the plan is more than feasible for him, but not for his girlfriend.
The Reddit user admitted: “She doesn't make that much money and, most importantly, she currently has around $20k in credit card debt due to a period of unexpected unemployment she had in the past that forced her to spend savings and live off credit cards.”
Still, he decided to tell her that he planned to leave. Immediately, the Redditor's girlfriend asked if she could accompany him, but she offered the idea of going to Las Vegas instead of traveling to another country. Her economic situation made her tired of undertaking such an important trip.
“I told her I would be willing to cover our accommodation and, depending on where we are going, help her pay for her airfare,” the boyfriend admitted. However, he had no interest in covering the entire cost of the trip for him and her.
However, his generous offer was not enough for her to consider her mountain of debt. Even if they traveled domestically, she wouldn't be able to pay for half of the plane ticket and meals.
The Reddit writer confessed: “I said I understood, but I've also been wanting to do this milestone birthday for a while now and I still intend to go, even if it's alone, and I'll only be away for a week.
“She got upset because I was traveling without her and that caused a little fight.”
His friends and family are divided over the situation. Some people in her life have argued that he should take this journey himself, “with or without her.”
“On the other hand, some say it's cruel of me to be planning a vacation in front of a person who is trying to pay off large amounts of debt anyway,” he said.
Fellow Redditors think he's justified in leaving his girlfriend behind.
“You have too much of your own life to be held back by someone you barely invest in. She can overcome her fomo or you can find a new partner who supports you,” one reader commented.
Another wrote: “Asking to go is fine. But the moment it became clear that your plans were unaffordable, the only acceptable next step is for her to tell you how excited she is that you can take this trip.”
“You've only been with her 3 MONTHS so far and she's already in a bad mood because you won't foot the entire bill for a trip for YOUR milestone birthday next year?” added another Reddit user.
