Wedding Party

Best man is a jerk

Okay, so I'm feeling pretty stuck at the moment. My fiance picked his best friend to be his best man. He doesn't actually have any other close friends, so it was an obvious choice. I really don't like the guy - and for pretty valid reasons!!! 

A few months into our relationship, fiance brought best friend and his partner round to his for dinner. I got on really well with her but on about the third occasion meeting them, they again came for dinner. You could cut the air with a knife, it was so tense. She looked so upset that when best friend went outside to BBQ with my fiance, I asked her what was wrong. She broke down and told me that he'd got drunk the night before and violently raped her!!!! She chose to stay with him and work things through etc and asked me not to say anything, which I respected for her sake. They got married; it was small and out of town so my fiance didn't get invited. 

The two of them did a lot for us over the years; they helped me with my mums funeral and with renovating our house. They had a child and a year later we had one too. She and I hung out all the time and I constantly cringed about the things she told me, like her husband threw a glass at her, which smashed on the wall above her head WHILE she was holding their child!!!
So yeah. Zero respect for the guy. 

Fast forward a little, and they split up. I remained friends with her and the two of them are still going through a nasty custody battle. She will also be at our wedding. 
He has a new partner, who is lovely. They live together. My fiance and I heard from 2 different people that he is on tinder, so after talking with fiance about it (he knows everything mentioned above), he messaged him to ask wtf is going on. Best man said very little. I felt morally obliged to let his current partner know, because I would hole someone would have the courage to let ME know if the roles were reversed. She was (of course) devastated. She then told me that my fiance apparently hadn't been his best man because his ex wife (my friend) didn't like me. I was blown away by that lie. I told her the truth about the shitty things he'd done to his ex and she made excuses so I let it go. 

He's now unfriended me on facebook, so I asked him why. His answer was that "while you're [me] loyal to [his ex] and letting her manipulate you [me] then I will keep you at arms length." 
I've asked him what impact my friendship with her has on his life, as I keep out of any of their drama and whether he could come round to talk about it, as it's otherwise going to make our wedding pretty awkward and isn't fair on my fiance. I have always been polite to him despite bot liking him. He's ghosting me like a child and I'm feeling pretty stuck. Guy is a total dickhead and I genuinely don't want him near our wedding but fiance and he have a 12yr friendship and he's supported my fiance through a lot. Fiance thinks his behavior is pretty too, but doesn't know how to approach it either. I think he needs to be the one to tell his mate to pull his head in and talk to us about it, or he can't be the BM. 

What would you do??? 

Re: Best man is a jerk

  • What I would do is not have had this guy in my life for all this time. He helped with your mother's funeral and your renovations, but now that he's unfriended you on facebook and not willing to discuss it with you, this is where you draw a line?

    I certainly would be questioning my relationship with my FI if he were willing to ignore his friend being a violent abuser, but it doesn't sound like he's the only one.

  • Okay, so I'm feeling pretty stuck at the moment. My fiance picked his best friend to be his best man. He doesn't actually have any other close friends, so it was an obvious choice. I really don't like the guy - and for pretty valid reasons!!! 

    A few months into our relationship, fiance brought best friend and his partner round to his for dinner. I got on really well with her but on about the third occasion meeting them, they again came for dinner. You could cut the air with a knife, it was so tense. She looked so upset that when best friend went outside to BBQ with my fiance, I asked her what was wrong. She broke down and told me that he'd got drunk the night before and violently raped her!!!! She chose to stay with him and work things through etc and asked me not to say anything, which I respected for her sake. They got married; it was small and out of town so my fiance didn't get invited. 

    The two of them did a lot for us over the years; they helped me with my mums funeral and with renovating our house. They had a child and a year later we had one too. She and I hung out all the time and I constantly cringed about the things she told me, like her husband threw a glass at her, which smashed on the wall above her head WHILE she was holding their child!!!
    So yeah. Zero respect for the guy. 

    Fast forward a little, and they split up. I remained friends with her and the two of them are still going through a nasty custody battle. She will also be at our wedding. 
    He has a new partner, who is lovely. They live together. My fiance and I heard from 2 different people that he is on tinder, so after talking with fiance about it (he knows everything mentioned above), he messaged him to ask wtf is going on. Best man said very little. I felt morally obliged to let his current partner know, because I would hole someone would have the courage to let ME know if the roles were reversed. She was (of course) devastated. She then told me that my fiance apparently hadn't been his best man because his ex wife (my friend) didn't like me. I was blown away by that lie. I told her the truth about the shitty things he'd done to his ex and she made excuses so I let it go. 

    He's now unfriended me on facebook, so I asked him why. His answer was that "while you're [me] loyal to [his ex] and letting her manipulate you [me] then I will keep you at arms length." 
    I've asked him what impact my friendship with her has on his life, as I keep out of any of their drama and whether he could come round to talk about it, as it's otherwise going to make our wedding pretty awkward and isn't fair on my fiance. I have always been polite to him despite bot liking him. He's ghosting me like a child and I'm feeling pretty stuck. Guy is a total dickhead and I genuinely don't want him near our wedding but fiance and he have a 12yr friendship and he's supported my fiance through a lot. Fiance thinks his behavior is pretty too, but doesn't know how to approach it either. I think he needs to be the one to tell his mate to pull his head in and talk to us about it, or he can't be the BM. 

    What would you do??? 
    Honestly my main concern would be that my FI still wanted to be a friends with a violent domestic abuser. I don't care how long they've been friends. I've known my best friends for 30 years. If I had found out one of them was abusive to their partners, they would no longer be my friend. Full stop. End of story. 

    I would have a very hard time marrying a person that remained best friends with a person like this. 
    I'm here too.  Forgot about the loser ahole friend...where's your FI in all of this??
  • I would not marry someone who stayed friends with a rapist.  
  • Oh girl, your FI has a raping, spouse beating best man, and you asked HIM why he unfriended YOU? Why not ask your fiance why he is friends with this guy? A person's friends say a lot about their character. If my husband had wanted a wife beater to be his best man, I would not have married him. 
  • I would not be okay with a rapist and wife-beater in the picture as friend, best man, or whatever, and I'd be firm with my fiance about that. It's a hill for me to die on.
  • Yes, these are all what I've been thinking/feeling for years. I stayed quiet (ie didn't confront him) because my friend/his ex asked me not to. I didn't want to make her life hard for her. That is no longer relevant now they aren't together and also why I told his current partner- she had a right to know who she is REALLY with. 
    I told my fiance that I'm not comfortable with him being best man and he said he is pretty unimpressed with him too. As to WHY they're still friends - fiance tends to forgive everyone's misgivings and see past them, unless they're nasty to him personally. I can see the merits and the troubles with this. I'm a counselor so I too can see past people's misgivings. I don't however excuse consistent shitty behavior with a complete inability to own any part in it, as with his friend. 
    Fiance told him to sort it out and friend promised to do so. 
    It's not ever going to fix things with me - his friend is no longer welcome in our home and he will not be our best man. Fiance needs to accept this himself. His Dad can be his best man. We've talked about it and while he's gutted, this is just how it's going to be. 
    Thanks for helping me to reinforce that it's not just me and the guy really is a total loser. 
  • Yes, these are all what I've been thinking/feeling for years. I stayed quiet (ie didn't confront him) because my friend/his ex asked me not to. I didn't want to make her life hard for her. That is no longer relevant now they aren't together and also why I told his current partner- she had a right to know who she is REALLY with. 
    I told my fiance that I'm not comfortable with him being best man and he said he is pretty unimpressed with him too. As to WHY they're still friends - fiance tends to forgive everyone's misgivings and see past them, unless they're nasty to him personally. I can see the merits and the troubles with this. I'm a counselor so I too can see past people's misgivings. I don't however excuse consistent shitty behavior with a complete inability to own any part in it, as with his friend. 
    Fiance told him to sort it out and friend promised to do so. 
    It's not ever going to fix things with me - his friend is no longer welcome in our home and he will not be our best man. Fiance needs to accept this himself. His Dad can be his best man. We've talked about it and while he's gutted, this is just how it's going to be. 
    Thanks for helping me to reinforce that it's not just me and the guy really is a total loser. 
    I'm sorry, but I find the language you're using to describe this guy extremely shocking and unsettling. "Loser"? "Unimpressed"? He is a violent abuser to his partners. These aren't misgivings. They are acts of violence and abuse towards multiple people! He belongs in jail.

    The fact that you're a counselor makes this even more disturbing to me as a survivor of domestic violence and sexual assault. Honestly reading this just turns my stomach. 
    To add to this, there's a difference between possibly continuing to talk to someone ever and considering that person a friend - especially your BEST MAN.  This is someone who has repeatedly shown to be abusive to the point that he is committing crimes that warrant prosecution.  That he has not done this to you or your FI are not reasons that he gets to stay a friend.  This guy isn't just a loser - he is someone that should be in jail and while out everyone you know should be told to stay away.  There is NO way I would ever keep my mouth shut around those he dated if I knew he was a cheating rapist.   He's a danger to women.
  • ei34ei34 member
    Knottie Warrior 2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers
    edited December 2021
    Yes, these are all what I've been thinking/feeling for years. I stayed quiet (ie didn't confront him) because my friend/his ex asked me not to. I didn't want to make her life hard for her. That is no longer relevant now they aren't together and also why I told his current partner- she had a right to know who she is REALLY with. 
    I told my fiance that I'm not comfortable with him being best man and he said he is pretty unimpressed with him too. As to WHY they're still friends - fiance tends to forgive everyone's misgivings and see past them, unless they're nasty to him personally. I can see the merits and the troubles with this. I'm a counselor so I too can see past people's misgivings. I don't however excuse consistent shitty behavior with a complete inability to own any part in it, as with his friend. 
    Fiance told him to sort it out and friend promised to do so. 
    It's not ever going to fix things with me - his friend is no longer welcome in our home and he will not be our best man. Fiance needs to accept this himself. His Dad can be his best man. We've talked about it and while he's gutted, this is just how it's going to be. 
    Thanks for helping me to reinforce that it's not just me and the guy really is a total loser. 
     He's more than a loser, he's a criminal. 

    Also, as an example, I had misgivings about how effective remote learning would be long-term.  I'm a counselor too (though I'm not even weighing in professionally here, just as a random person) and the fact that your FI was able to look past something as violent as rape just because it didn't affect him personally is a huge red flag. 
    edit spelling
  • Thank you everyone for your input; you're all correct and I had indeed downplayed this (previously suffered years of abuse from ex partners so it's helpful to note that I still have this conditioning so that I can work on it. Ironically if it were a client then I'd be seeing them as a violent offender too).

    Anyway.... I reiterated all points to my fiance and used someone's words from above (thanks) and told him I'd die on a hill before letting this guy be our best man. Long story short, fiance asked his Dad to be best man intead. When he told his 'friend' that he'd asked his dad instead, the guy replied to say that "due to my actions (ie telling his partner about the horrendous things he'd done) and the fact that we're inviting his ex to the wedding, they are not going to attend. Glad that's one less stress there and I'm not surprised that the Narcissist made it my/our fault. Fiance has finally absorbed the realization of what this guy has done and who he is as a person and does not want to be friends with him anymore. I'm relieved.

    I'm also very concerned for his current partner as they have just moved to some land in the middle of nowhere with her kids, so they are isolated. I still have contact with her so I will continue to check in with her. I hope she is safe.  
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