CHOOSING a partner who reciprocates effort is essential in building a healthy, balanced relationship.
Unfortunately, one woman learned this the hard way after investing emotionally and financially in her ex-boyfriend—only to be met with indifference.
In a Threads post, she said that in the early stages of her relationship with her former boyfriend — who had been a widower for 10 years — she eagerly looked forward to celebrating his birthday, especially after he told her that no one had celebrated it in years.
According to the post, the woman claimed she spent RM1,800 on his birthday celebration. However, when her own birthday came around, she didn’t even receive a birthday wish.
Initially, she thought it was strange and assumed he was planning a surprise. She waited for three weeks, but he gave no indication of remembering or celebrating her birthday.
“My birthday passed without any celebration. I only had a piece of roti canai and drank some teh tarik—and not even with the person I thought would be my future husband,” she said.
As the relationship progressed, tensions rose after the couple argued over the lack of birthday acknowledgement. Her ex claimed he had simply forgotten, which made her realise she could not live with such a calculative partner—especially when it came to food.
She explained that she was usually the one who paid whenever they dined at more expensive places she had suggested.
“Every time we went out to eat, he would choose the place. Honestly, I was always afraid to order too much, even if we were just eating at a mamak stall. He would always order for me, and I’d just eat whatever he chose. I didn’t mind, because I knew how stingy he was—especially with food, let alone anything else,” she added.
The relationship lasted for over a year. During that time, she said she had bought him many gifts, yet the only thing she ever received from him was a single packet of Thai tea.
Her story struck a chord with many online, with users expressing sympathy for her situation and applauding her for walking away from an unbalanced relationship.
“If this stingy man had become your husband, you would have suffered. Thank goodness you realised sooner,” one user commented.
