1. “One night I was complaining to my girlfriend offhandedly about the lunch options in the cafeteria where I work. The next morning I woke up to the smell of bacon and the sight of my girl making one of her amazing BLTs for me to take to the office. That’s what I call a keeper. I decided right then I’d be proposing.”

— Peyton, 29

2. “The first woman I made it past the three month dating mark with is now my wife. How’d she make an ‘honest man’ out of me? I’ll tell you. She never put any pressure on me. She’s a chill ass independent woman. She’s the best. She’s really sexual and willing to experiment in bed and she’s passionate about her work (she’s a photographer), and I respect that a lot about her. We’re what they call ‘meant to be,’ or whatever.”

— T., 29

3. “I’m not the kind of guy who gets his emission checked on time or his passport renewed before it expires. So when my girlfriend started picking up the slack for me on that front—just by asking me how she could help me get shit done—she won me over. She’s indispensible. The best CEO of Household a man could ask for.”

— Saul, 28

4. “We were sitting at home one night, both tired and bored out of our fucking minds from long days at work, when she grabbed my hand and led me out the door without explanation. Twenty minutes later we were downing tequila shots at a local bar getting stupid drunk like we used to in college. The next morning I woke up with a raging hangover, but I suddenly understood that being hungover or being anything was okay, as long as I was with her. So I asked her to marry me. I had terrible breath, bed head, and no ring. But the whole thing went over well.”

— Lars, 30

5. “Killer BJs. It’s that simple, man.”

— Dennis, 27

6. “I wish I could tell you that I experienced some epiphany about wanting to spend the rest of my life with the amazing woman I now call my wife, but I’m not into sugar coating. We got married because I knocked her up and we’re both religious, so I pretty much had to get down on one knee. On the upside of being forced into wedlock, we’re actually a lot happier as a couple than most of our other married friends.”

— Andrew, 25

7. “We were vacationing in Turks and Caicos, lounging on the beach all day and I looked over at my girlfriend randomly and our eyes met and I sensed that neither of us felt any pressure whatsoever to make small talk or to make a certain expression or to even say one word out loud. She’s the first person I could really enjoy a shared silence with and that’s important. I proposed on that trip with a little piece of rope for a ring and a Caribbean sunset as the backdrop.”

— Yann, 31

8. “The words just came out: ‘Marry me.’ I didn’t mean to say them, but I did. She replied so enthusiastically and I could see the joy in her heart seeping through her skin, so I obviously couldn’t take it all back. But I didn’t even want to. She looked so damn happy and I decided that if I could make someone that happy over and over again, I’d have a meaningful life. So here I am, married. Not complaining. Yet.”

— JP, 25

9. “I spent my youth preaching to anyone who would listen about the stupidity of marriage. I told everyone I’d never tie the knot. But in my early thirties I met a woman who changed everything for me. My wife and I are so compatible when it comes to literally all aspects of life—work, play, hobbies, you name it. It’s pretty sickening. She made a walking hypocrite out of me the minute I asked her to marry me, but I couldn’t care less what anyone but my wonderful wife thinks at this stage in life.”

— Lawson, 36

10. “When I was young I had a lot of fun, if you know what I mean. Pretty much the second I met my current wife, I got tired of sleeping around and bouncing from one chick to the next. It was like that need just evaporated when I saw her adorable, crooked smile. Turns out I’m a pretty conventional guy with simple needs. Five years later, things are great.”

— Derek, 32

11. “Marriage is a major commitment. Not something you want to jump into without thinking it over fully. But if you overthink anything, it becomes a mindfuck. That’s what my girlfriend kept telling me and telling me. It’s like she brainwashed me or something, but in a good way. I surprised myself when I asked her to marry me over dinner on our third anniversary of dating. We’re still going strong, eight months post wedding. Impressive, right?”

— Frederick, 32

12. “How’d my wife get me to pop the question? She didn’t, actually. She turned that shit around. She and asked me, and I love her for it.”

— Zach, 26