Growing up, I was the only child. I never had my older sibling's hand-me-downs or got into fights about who borrowed something of mine without asking. In reality, being the only child was at times the worst because there was nobody else around. When both of my parents were working, I had to find ways to keep myself entertained while they were busy. I have realized that I am the type of person who likes being surrounded by positive energy from other people, and it is hard to manifest that high level of energy.

With that being said, I was beyond thrilled when it came to finding out my roommate for my first semester of college. Sure, I shared a room or some sort of living arrangement when I went to overnight camps, but those were often short lived friendships that lasted for a week or proceeded into the next summer. This was going to be the first time really I was living with someone - cleaning, buying groceries, and other vitals into maintaining a dorm. This year, I live in a suite with three other girls, all of who are amazing, but there are some realities I never considered until halfway through my first semester.

1. There is so much hair everywhere.

Sometimes, you find a strand of your hair that is attached to your leggings or somewhat weaved into your clothes. Living with three other girls, we all shed hair. In the shower. In the sink. All. Over. The. Dorm. It is pretty inevitable, and sometimes even gross, to see a clump of someone's hair while you're brushing your teeth and getting ready for class. It is definitely most annoying when you just wiped and cleaned the sink one minute, but seemingly next, there are even more strands in the sink. How?!

2. There is ALWAYS someone in one of the bathrooms.

The way that the suite is set up in my residence hall is one bathroom has the shower, another has the toilet, but both have sinks. Like mentioned, I do live with three other girls this semester, so there is always someone in the bathroom. Also, for the most part, we are all different majors, so we have different class schedules and other requirements for our major. At this point, there is a certain pattern that can be mapped out. For example - Who is in the shower first? Who normally gets ready for class around this time? There are moments of just major inconvenience and annoyance when you have to go yet there is someone in there. However, I do have to say that I am blessed with not having to use a communal bathroom.

3. There is also ALWAYS someone in your room.

Like everyone, I do value my alone time. That even includes the moments where I'm just alone in my room - playing my Spotify playlist without earbuds and just getting work done. That goes on to say that I like singing Taylor Swift's new album (which is a total banger) out loud shamelessly. That was how I studied in high school. However, you lose that when you get a roommate. For my roommate and I, we both have complete different schedules, so it is hard to be quiet at ten in the morning after I've had one class and my roommate might still be asleep. It is nice I guess to see a familiar face each day, but there are just some times that your girl likes to be alone without having to leave the comfort of her bed, you know?

4. You are NOT going to be best friends with your roommates, sorry to break it to you.

I did have the high hopes that I would just click with all my roommates. I had friends that graduated the year before, and I heard all of their stories about going to parties together, having movie nights, and just going to explore and try new things. Sure, for the most part, I have spent some time with each of my roommates individually but never together. This is what my mother refers to as co-existing. There are moments of some tension and just awkwardness, but that just seems to even out into this co-existing state where we are all just trying to get through our first semester and living our own lives. I like to thing that the four of us are friends to some extent, but just not that best friend status I kind of imagined in having.

5. I can always turn towards my roommates.

Listen, none of this is meant to say I hate my roommates or anything on that level. In reality, I strongly feel that if I needed something or if something went horribly wrong (because life is wild), they would be there in a heartbeat. In a way, the four of us in our little suite have become a small family. You don't always like your family just because of differences and other habits that we find annoying, but family is always there for one another during the good and bad times. I have to say that I was pretty lucky that I'm not living a literal American horror story with my roommates, as some people have it way worse. And yes, I did come into college with a somewhat unrealistic expectation of being best friends, so that is my fault. Yet, I do love my roommates like family.