Now that finals are winding down or over, the relaxing can begin. Some students will return to their jobs, some will take this time to vacation, and some will simply enjoy the stress-free time. After an intense sixteen weeks, this much-needed break couldn’t come fast enough.

But this break brings another wonderful thing with it as well: your hometown friends.

When I say I have two friends back home, I literally mean that I have two friends. All other friends I’ve had through the years have drifted apart. It was sad when it happened, but it’s just something that everyone goes through. That doesn’t necessarily make it any easier, but it helped me cope with the whole situation. Anyway, luckily for me, my friends and I are perfectly fine when we spend months apart. It sucks not being able to see them, but when we get together, it’s like nothing has changed. It’s not awkward or weird. We can still talk about anything and everything.

However, this isn’t always the case with some friends. Things can get awkward pretty quickly, even though these people are your closest friends.

One thing you don’t want to do is just talk about yourself. Yeah, you have a lot to catch your friends up on, but they’re going to get really bored hearing about every party you went to and how Jake did this thing and Hannah laughed so hard she peed. Just try to highlight the best parts of the semester. Like you added a major or your roommate got a drunk tattoo. There’s no need to go super in-depth about the past four months.

Make sure you’re asking about your friends. They’re going to have a ton of stuff to catch you up on, too. Ask questions about things they’ve already told you. They’ll appreciate that through all of the craziness that you remembered that they went on a spontaneous road trip and got a flat tire. It can’t be all about you. Ask about how their classes went, any roommate issues, and what they watched on Netflix when they should have been studying.

Throw in a few jokes here and there. If there’s an awkward tension, make a joke about that. You’ll laugh, it’ll spark a memory or something that happened, and you’ll get back into talking. It’s OK if things are awkward. Even though you have been friends for years, there can still be awkward moments. You just got to get past them and keep talking and laughing. And by the end of break, you’ll be hanging out as if nothing were different and you’ve been hanging out all year long.

Seeing your friends for the first time in months should be a happy occasion. Don’t overthink the situation. Just make conversation, and ask about their semester experiences. Everything will work out and your friendship will make it through!