Picture the scene. You are down to be the best man at your brother's wedding. All of your friends and family will be there. The ceremony was arranged months ahead and, to top it off, it will be taking place at a paradisiac Caribbean beach destination, thousands of miles from home. But then, at the last minute, something comes up and you are unable to attend.
This sort of situation might rock many families to the core, but not this one. All of the wedding guests are pleased about the prospect of the best man's absence – in fact, they and even the groom himself might rather be with him than at the wedding!
The 'runaway best man' in question is none other than Welsh international Chris Gunter, and the pressing engagement that he cannot get out of is a UEFA EURO 2016 quarter-final against Belgium this Friday, 1 July.
When best laid plans go awry"I think I'm going to be the first best man ever to give a speech over Skype," Gunter told us light-heartedly. "But it's even worse for the others. Although the wedding is on 7 July, everyone had planned to travel out ten days in advance. That would mean them missing the Belgium match and has created a lot of problems."
Even the groom is not immune to the issue and finds himself at the mercy of his fiancée. "It looks like he'll go to Cancun, come back to Lille to watch the game and then head straight back to the Caribbean to carry on with the wedding. At least that was his plan: I don't know how well his wife-to-be will take it," said the Reading player, laughing.
More than just an amusing subplot, what this story tellingly illustrates is how the Dragons' exploits in France have surprised and thrilled everyone in Wales. The 1-0 defeat of Northern Ireland was their first-ever victory in the knockout stages of a major international tournament. This achievement is heightened by the fact that this is their first campaign in such a competition since the 1958 FIFA World Cup Sweden™.
"It really is incredible to see what it's meant to the whole country and how much they're enjoying it," said the 26-year-old right-back. "It's been amazing to see the fans and the atmosphere they've created in the stands. If we players are still not able to grasp the magnitude of what's been achieved, I can only imagine what our fans feel."
The biggest of occasionsThe meeting with Belgium is considered the most important game in Welsh football history. It is small wonder, then, that some 30,000 supporters are expected to make the trip to Lille in order to play their part in what could be a legendary match.
The importance of the occasion is not lost on Neil Taylor, Gunter's fellow Dragons defender. "It's been an incredible tournament, really incredible," the Swansea left-back enthused. "We're 180 minutes from the final and anything could happen now. To be honest, we still can't believe it; the reality hasn't hit us yet but we want to keep going."
Carrying on their dream run will be no easy task, though. Belgium are ranked second in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, boast a star-studded squad and go into the encounter brimming with confidence following their impressive 4-0 win over Hungary in the Round of 16. However, the underdogs will not be short on belief either and will be buoyed by their recent brushes with the Belgians: the countries were in the same qualifying group and their two meetings yielded one draw and a Welsh victory.  
"We know Belgium well, as they do us. They're very strong, but anything could happen," said an upbeat Taylor, and Gunter struck an even more confident tone: "They're a really good side, but I think playing against a team like that could even suit us better. It works in our favour for them to attack us because we have the players to exploit any space left in behind."
Optimism and enthusiasm are sweeping across Wales right now, while an entire family are crossing their fingers that a wedding ceremony will have to go ahead without the best man. His absence, considering the circumstances, would likely be greeted even more gleefully than the moment when the happy couple say "I do".