My boyfriend and I are a rare case, and by that, I mean that we started to date almost immediately after starting our freshman year of college. Most couples that I have seen who enter college at the same time wait until the end of the first semester into the second semester or even the second year of college and beyond to begin dating. Transitioning to college and juggling academics is tough enough, but somehow, my boyfriend and I meshed well from the beginning. Our bond was so close that he abruptly asked me out on a late September day outside of The Cheesecake Factory, but that’s a story for another day.

When my guy and I started to date in college, we first went through what we call the “awkward stage.” During our first semester of college, we spent so much time together without yet having our label of boyfriend and girlfriend. Not to mention, there were kisses nonstop. Yikes! Talk about PDA. I guess the fact that I was his first kiss made him super kiss-hungry!

Anyway, we would always go to the dining hall together as well as off campus with a group of friends. We did everything together, and I really mean everything. Life was good during the first semester of college because the heavy college workload that high school seniors were warned about was inexistent.

My boyfriend and I took naps together in the middle of the school day, and we barely had any homework. The homework that we did have we could easily procrastinate on and still do well. My school day ended at 11:15 a.m. on some days and 12:30 p.m. the latest on other days, so my boyfriend and I had tons of free time. We had no responsibility and no extracurricular activities or job commitments. Our connection grew even tighter and tighter with the ample time we were allotted to one another.

Ah, those were the days.

Then second semester came along.

This meant that our classes were more spaced out, the homework was more demanding, and our school days ended later than before. *Sniffle, sniffle.* While we weren’t together 24/7 as before, my boyfriend and I still spent plenty of quality time with one another. Particularly since the second semester that we started dating was cold, we typically spent our weekends hibernating inside ordering Chinese food and binge-watching TV shows.

However, we also went out on dates alone. We still hung out in a group setting, but we began to branch off and form one unit as a couple and do our own thing. My boyfriend and I took frequent trips to the mall, Walmart, the movies, and Princeton via the campus shuttle. This second semester truly set our dynamic as a couple, and it is remarkable to see our evolution three years later as current college seniors.

For any person who wants to date in college but is afraid to pursue that special person due to fear of rejection or fear that the relationship won’t work due to the busyness of college, I encourage you to simply go for it. You never know unless you try, and you may wind up with that person who strikes a chord with you.

College dating can be tricky and messy, but it can also be rewarding and worthwhile. Who knows what your future with this wonderful person may have in store following college? Step outside of your comfort zone, and try something new because you may just get lucky.