My boyfriend gambles. And loses.

I got a text message from my boyfriend, as I sauntered through the restaurant. We work there and I was on my way to the kitchen to drop off a completed order. I slowed when I read the text:<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>*Have to cancel for today. For real.*<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>I groaned, and just as I was about to respond, my phone went off again. It was a text from his brother:<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>*Don't believe him. He's just blowing you off again, sorry. He's passed out on the couch. We're playing cards here and normally I'd be cool with you spending time with us, but you deserve better. You're very nice and with this much time together, I've gotten a chance to see that.*<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>I read that text in disbelief, and quickly scrolled up to see how many he had cancelled. We had planned to hit a mini golf course and had been planning this for TWO WEEKS. He had now cancelled an absolute total of six dates in three weeks. All because of gambles. <br><br>I'm not sure if you've played cards before, but I'm assuming it's like a lot of other gambles. Most times, you lose. And he always did. I scrolled back through the texts to see that he gambled every single day. If I was lucky, I got to see him two nights a week. And we're in a relationship for three years, as of last Friday. When I tried to bring him a little happy anniversary gift, he just groaned and said we'd talk about it when he was finished with his game. <br><br>The money he loses is even worse. I've seen him lose $500 in a day. gambles are expensive, you see. His brother said that my boyfriend usually spends around $600 gambles in a month, and only gets back around $300. He tries to save up, but he is always losing. His brother even joked once that he probably owed some of these people money. <br><br>I've tried to express this before. Heck, I did it just the other night, when he cancelled our plans and still didn't get around to picking up the little trinket I got him. He just laughed it off and said that he had work tomorrow and I should get some sleep. I went to his brother and asked if I could come over. He said I was welcome to. <br><br>When I got there, my boyfriend was passed out on the couch with the remote in his hand. The tv was still on, and a movie from the 90s was still playing. I was kind of sad when I thought about how much I wanted to see him. I wanted to spend some time with him. But he still made an effort to spend time with his brother in some way, as the movie was still playing. <br><br>I sat next to him and picked up his phone. I scrolled through the texts. He had gambles every single day, and he still owed some of these guys money. No wonder he gambles so much. <br><br>I gambled once, too. My boyfriend got upset when I did it, but I wanted to try out how it was. I ended up losing $200, and spent the rest of the month picking up extra shifts and selling stuff I didn't need to try to make that money back. <br><br>But I just wanted to try it out once. My boyfriend does this every day. I'm starting to think that maybe this is more than just a bad habit. My boyfriend is certainly addicted, but that alone wouldn't make him ditch me. I think he likes his gambles more. I certainly feel that way, lately. He does stuff with his brother and he does stuff with his friends. But I was just...the girlfriend. Who he shelved away and treated as a possession that he could drop whenever he was bored. <br><br>I picked up a nearby glass of water and poured it down on him. He groaned, and I held out his phone. <br><br>"You cancelled an entire date with me. We planned and you spend so much money on gambles, you don't even spend time with me!" I cried. <br><br>He shifted uncomfortably, looking at his brother. He opened his mouth and stumbled out a few words before he slammed a fist on the coffee table. <br><br>"I AM SICK OF YOU CRITICIZING ME!" He roared. <br><br>I stood up, shocked at his outburst. <br><br>"You criticize me, you asshole! I criticize you, because my boyfriend is essentially dead to me! He's gone. gambles have sucked him in and I've been shelved away. I'm sick of being your shelf girlfriend. You don't even talk to me. I'm starting to think...maybe we should break up." I said. <br><br>His jaw dropped and a shocked expression played across his features. <br><br>"No! No, that's not what I wanted. You're just being dramatic." He said. <br><br>I gasped. <br><br>"How am I being dramatic? I'm expressing how I feel. No, you're the dramatic one. You're so defensive, and that's because you gambles are so deep in your system. I'm done!" I said, grabbing my keys and phone. <br><br>I turned and walked out, before he could stop me. I started to cry as I opened the door to my car and plopped in. <br><br>I started to drive away, but I heard his brother calling out behind me. <br><br>"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."