College girls. Boys just can't get enough of us. Country stars can't stop singing about us and rappers can't stop writing lyrics about us. Our shiny, bouncy hair blows in the wind and makes us seem untouchable and perfect. We pose with our gorgeous sisters for pictures to show the world how much fun we're having. We flash our straight white teeth to distract you from any flaw you might find within us. Those flaws are our Kryptonite. We're pretty, sure, but we are also panicked.

I'm not sure why, but for some reason, society seems to think that if we look put together, we must be put together. Brushed hair means we're totally ready for our organic chemistry test, and a wrinkle-free shirt means we must have had a full night's sleep. We spend hours of time that we don't have putting on the façade of the girl everyone expects us to be. It's exhausting. So, here is our ugly reality, and I will not apologize for ruining the fanciful, false expectations everyone seems to have for us.

To start, I didn't shower yesterday. I was busy cramming for the test that determines my future in the program I've worked relentlessly to be accepted into. I put deodorant on and brushed my teeth, then I put dry shampoo in my hair this morning to cover up any signs of oil build-up that may ruin the look of my perfect voluminous hair. I wouldn't want to offend anyone around me by looking the way I actually feel: tired. Also, I didn't take off my make-up from last night. I just powdered it and added some concealer under my eyes to cover the bags and erase the shine.

I was worried everyone would think I'm not fun anymore if I declined a night out on the town to go to the library. So, I did both. I went out and drank the cranberry vodka that I don't even like because when the guy offering to buy me a drink asks what he can order me he's not listening. He's just going through the motions, because he likes the way my blue eyes shine in the neon lights. Now I'm here, sitting in the library drinking coffee to try and stay awake with last night's makeup on, re-touched, to continue looking wonderful. You see a pretty little girl who knows how to balance a party and an education. In reality, I'm a pretty little girl struggling to stay awake and get the English paper that's due tomorrow done.

I'm a college girl. I am smart. I've been accepted into a prestigious university. I have ambitions. I have goals. I smile when I'm sad, and I shrug it off when the girl beside me whispers too loudly that she thinks I need to hit the gym more often. I have multiple remarkable qualities. I also struggle, though. I struggle more often than you will ever be able to understand. I cry in my room when the distraction of laughter wears off, and I'm left to face the reality of my workload. I work relentlessly to just make it by. I'm at my wits end. So. I ask you a favor—a favor that I feel most college girls would appreciate for you to respect.

Tell me I'm going to make it. Look at me, past my outward appearance and really look at me. Look at the way my makeup tries to cover up my worry wrinkles and offer to help me study. Tell me I look beautiful when you catch me without my makeup on and my hair tangled in a mess. Maybe next time that will give me the confidence to spend my time on the important things I need to do instead of my appearance. Buy me a coffee and offer me a ride to the library instead of buying me my favorite bottle of wine. But if you do buy me my favorite bottle of wine, save a spot for me beside you cuddle me for a bit. I'm energetic, but I'm not the energizer bunny. I need a break sometimes, and even though I don't let you see my stress, it's present, and the human touch is a wonderful remedy.

The point I'm trying to make, is that we try so hard to be the perfect college girls that we keep hearing about. I've never met one of them though, so I'm not sure they exist. Or maybe they do, maybe the perfect college girl is the one struggling and busting her butt to reach the goals she made for herself even when so many silly little things constantly get in the way of accomplishing them. I ask you to try and really see us, and embrace our flaws. We're trying to embrace them too. A little encouragement goes a long way. Pay it forward. You can tell me I'm pretty, but you can also tell me that it's okay to not be perfect. You can tell me that my struggle makes me beautiful, because I wish more of us girls knew that it truly does.