Small habits can become big relationship issues.

The following story involves a man who loves whistling.

But his boyfriend hates this habit and finds it unbearable.

He doesn’t do it on purpose, though, but the boyfriend still calls him out when he does it unconsciously.

Let’s take a closer look!

AITA for whistling?

I (28M) love to whistle. I’m good at it.

I’m a former band kid who loves music.

I’ve had a habit for a decade or more of whistling along to music.

I whistle while I’m milling about the house. I whistle on walks.

This man’s boyfriend hates that he whistles.

My boyfriend (26M) hates it. He hates it a lot.

He says hearing me whistle is like nails on a chalkboard. He says I lack self-awareness when I whistle.

He says people around me hate it. I think there is some truth to that.

I’m not exactly whistling in libraries and movie theaters,  but I also think he is very extreme about it.

I have made a conscious effort to whistle less. I try to avoid doing it around him.

He doesn’t do it on purpose.

Every once in a while, a song will come on. Then, I’ll find myself whistling.

I tell him it’s not intentional. I don’t actively choose to annoy him by whistling.

Whenever he calls me out on it, I stop.

I try to explain that it’s a habit I’ve had for years.

I can’t just stop all of a sudden, at least not easily.

They recently fought because he started whistling when his boyfriend played a song in the car.

We recently had a big fight about it. We were driving.

He queued a song I like. Before I knew it, I was whistling.

He angrily told me to stop. I stopped right away.

He said I was being disrespectful. He said I whistle even though I know he hates it.

Now, he’s wondering if he was the jerk for having such a habit.

I don’t do it maliciously. I do it subconsciously. Am I the jerk for whistling?

I care more about his happiness than I do whistling.

But it’s a form of loss to me.

I would be giving up something that’s brought me so much joy for years.

Let’s read the responses of other people to this story.

This user shares their personal thoughts.

Here’s an honest opinion from this person.

Whistling is obnoxious, says this one.

Short and straightforward.

Finally, here’s a valid point from a fellow whistler.

One person’s joyful habit can be another person’s nightmare.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.