Boundaries in relationships can sometimes be misunderstood.

The following story involves a man who comforted his sister-in-law when she got upset during a family night out.

He was holding her arm in a non-malicous way, but his wife saw it differently.

His wife got upset and accused him of crossing a line.

Do you think his wife’s arguments were valid? Read the full story below for all the details.

AITA for touching my SIL arm?

This happened a few weeks ago. I am generally not sure if I was in the wrong here.

I have been married to my wife for 11 years. We have been dating for 17 years.

My wife has a sister who is 2 years older. I have known her equally long, so we are close.

We are family.

This man went out with his wife’s family to celebrate his father-in-law’s birthday.

A few weeks ago, we went out to celebrate my father-in-law’s birthday.

We left the kids at home with babysitters.

We had a nice time and went out for some drinks after. We all overdid it a little bit.

My sister-in-law had gotten into a little disagreement with her brother about his upcoming wedding.

He was being a little mean to her, but nothing crazy. She can be sensitive, and her feelings were hurt.

He tried to console his sister-in-law who was upset and crying.

Her husband was not there that evening. He was away on business.

At the bar, she started crying. I was just there consoling her a little bit.

That is what one does when someone is upset.

My wife went to the bathroom. When she came back, I had my hand holding her arm in a consoling way.

Honestly, I did not think anything of it. My wife kind of looked at me weird, so I removed my hand.

His wife called him out on it and accused him of crossing the boundary.

In the cab on the way home, she unloaded on me.

She said I had crossed a boundary and that it was unacceptable.

The next morning, she said a similar thing.

Although she did ultimately apologize.

He’s not sure if he was at fault here.

I was just reacting to someone crying. It was like a natural thing in my mind.

It was also in front of her entire family. Obviously, it was not anything sneaky or malicious.

My wife has brought it up a couple of times since.

She still seems upset about it. I am not sure if I was the jerk here.

Only people with malicious minds would think negatively about something going on between their partner and sibling.

Obviously, there was nothing secretive or inappropriate about how he comforted his sister-in-law.

But then again, feelings and boundaries can mean different things for some individuals, especially in emotional situations.

If you enjoyed this post, check out this post about an entitled daughter who wants the same rewards as her hardworking brother.

What do you think about this? Let’s find out what others have to say.

Your wife is overreacting, says this one.

This user shares their personal thoughts.

This person has a question.

Here’s a valid point.

Finally, short and simple.

Sometimes, even a simple gesture can accidentally start a full-blown argument.