For those who don’t know me, I’m Tyler, Nick’s best man. I’m honored to be Nick’s best man. It’s a responsibility I took very seriously starting two days ago.

But really, I know that my duty as a close friend to Nick will extend to the future. He’ll probably call me from time to time telling me about an issue and asking for advice, and I’ll say, “Nick, this sounds like something you could’ve texted me.” Or he’ll say, “Hey man, it’s been just been a stressful time here. I could really use a weekend away.” And I’ll say, “Nick, you’ve only been married for a week.”

I got a text earlier this month from Nick asking if I had given any thought to my best man speech. I lied and said yes. He told me that I wasn’t allowed to insult Braelynne. So yes, I apparently give off the vibe that I would spend my best man speech insulting the bride. So anyway, after I rewrote my speech, I came to the conclusion that I could never insult somebody who’s decided to dedicate their life to the maintenance of my friend Nick.

I trust he’s gotten better over the years, but Nick and I used to do some really weird things. Like when we dedicated our lives to the show Supernatural and embraced each other more than once in my living room when things got too emotional. Or when we would drive to Taco Bell late at night and we’d each be wearing a storm trooper helmet and he’d have a giant Hulk fist on his hand. And then there was the time Nick walked around my house with a nerf gun because he felt like he had to protect us from things unseen.

So when Nick told me he was going to propose to Braelynne, my natural guy instinct was to tell him, “No! You’re young, don’t lock yourself down!” But I had known Nick long enough at that point to understand this was probably a now-or-never thing. So I said, “Shoot your shot bro.” Or something like that.

He asked me if I’d take pictures of the proposal, and of course I said yes. The weird thing was that we met at a closed Quaker Steak on Coliseum, and I thought, “Are you also buying cocaine today?” But it was a great time, watching Nick pull off the event and then to see Braelynne sign away her soul like that. Then he walked over to me and got on one knee. I thought, “Nick, those hugs in my living room were really just a spur of the moment thing, nothing more.” But he asked me to be his best man.

Now, a little over a year later, we’re all here fulfilling our promises. You two are going to be wonderful for each other. And because I know there’s nothing a newly married couple loves more than unsolicited advice from their unmarried friends, I’ll leave you with this: Never go to bed without turning to each other and saying, “I, love, our dog.”

To Nick and Braelynne.