Moving away to college is hard, especially when you know you have to do it all alone. My entire life, I have surrounded myself with a huge group of friends, who quickly became a sort of comfort blanket for me. My friends were always there when I didn't want to something alone. Like going to get coffee, or going on a hike, or even making a trip to the doctor, I always had a friend who was willing to tag along. When I made the choice to go to Cleveland State University, I realized something that absolutely terrified me. For the first time in my entire life, I was going to be alone. Like really truly alone.
Shortly after committing to CSU, I found out a guy I was graduating with was also going there. He became my comfort blanket instantly. I made sure to schedule my orientation on the same day he did, and when the opportunity came to go to an overnight sleepover, I made him come with me regardless if he wanted to or not.
Then, I somehow talked my favorite friend from work into applying to Cleveland State after she thought she was set on going to Akron. Little did I know two years later this girl would not only be my best friend, but my roommate, and my family away from home.
When I met Baylee, we were 16 years old, working night shifts at Chuck E. Cheese. These nights often ended with us in tears at 11 pm, after a fundraiser, when the vacuum broke one too many times. She went to high school at a neighboring high school, and she started dating one of our co-workers, who was also my friend, and we hit it off instantly.
But when we got to college, things were different. During the first semester of freshman year, Baylee was still dating the same guy from Chuck E Cheese, and he was all the way in Alabama. I was 100% NOT in a relationship and tried to live my freshman year as freely as possible, making a ton of friends, attending questionable parties, and pretending like I wasn't spending 20 thousand dollars to sleep in a twin sized bed and eat pizza rolls every night for dinner. We were at two different points in our lives, and we were growing apart.
But then, Baylee and her boyfriend broke up.
She started coming over every day, all day. She would sleep on my couch, eat my food, and wake me up from my many naps when she needed someone to talk to. We started to do everything, I mean EVERYTHING together. She would even sit on the toilet and talk to me while I took a shower because 15 minutes away from each other was just too much time apart. She supported me on my health kick our second semester and would come to the gym with me every single night for hours, even if she didn't want. Baylee become my mom, and I became hers. We always made sure the other had ate dinner, no one ever went to Starbucks to study alone, and we both made it home, safe and sound in our beds (sometimes not our own beds) every single night.
The friends you make at college are so much more than just friends. They're family. A family that you get to chose, and that is all your own. And that is exactly what Baylee had become, my family.
Our sophomore year, we became roommates. Now, we're headed into our junior year and not only are we roommates again but were sharing 6 foot by 6 foot room and can touch each other while laying in our own twin sized beds across the room.
Being around someone 24/7 can sometimes be a lot to handle, especially when you like your alone time as I do. But when you find someone like Baylee, spending all of your time with one person becomes so much fun. Baylee is the most talented, brave, kind, driven, and goofy person I have ever met. Despite everything she has been through, she continues to get better grades than me and is well on her way to becoming the best baby nurse in all the land, literally.
So Baylee, if you are reading this: Thank you. Thank you for being my person. Thank you for staying up late and watching one more episode of Rick and Morty even though you're a grandma at heart, who goes to bed at 9 p.m. Thank you for having patience with me when I'm extra grumpy in the morning and I yell at you for keeping the shower curtain open. And thank you for being my best friend.
At the end of the day, I know no matter who I have I'll always have Baylee. And I hope she knows she'll always have me, along with her own bedroom at my house.
