You’ve probably heard a million and one horror stories about freshman year roommate pairs. I mean, living with a complete and utter stranger for nine straight months in a 15-by-15-foot jail cell does sound like the perfect backdrop for a scene of a nightmare. Some people end up with a roommate who is their complete opposite; the bookworm rooms with the party animal, the night owl rooms with the early bird, the neat freak is paired with the slob. Some people live harmoniously with their roommate, paying little attention to each other's presence and only exchanging a few, necessary words a day. Others will room with someone who will become their worst enemy, making their dorm room nothing short of a war zone. For the lucky ones, however, your freshman year roommate will end up being your best friend, your confidant, and (when necessary) your caregiver. If you’re lucky enough to find all of these things in your roommate, here are some things you should thank them for:

Thank you for not judging me when my side of the room was a disaster because I procrastinated on three essays and didn’t have time to clean up, or because I was too busy getting ready for a party and just couldn’t decide what to wear.

Thank you for having really cute clothes and for always letting me borrow your best stuff, even though you knew there was a very high possibility that I would return whatever I borrowed with a stain. Also, thank you for being the same size as me (except in shoes... but I managed).

Thank you for holding my hair back the night that I discovered that fireball and I are arch enemies. It was 3 a.m. and you had to be up early the next day, and you were still there for me. Also, thank you for doing the exact same thing for me the next night, after I had promptly forgotten what had happened the last time I drank fireball (just 24 short hours before... oops).

Thank you for setting fitness goals with me during the day and then ordering a large cheesy pizza with me in the middle of the night, of course while listening to Shakira and talking about our feelings.

Thank you for listening to every. last. detail. about my love life on repeat and for giving me the best advice that you could, even though I was too stupid to listen half the time. Thank you for never saying “I told you so.”

Thank you for keeping the horrific pictures you have of me locked away in the depths of your camera roll and for never letting them see the light of day (except on birthdays, of course). But that’s OK, I have my own stash of blackmail when needed.

Thank you for dealing with my anxiety attacks and for cuddling with me when I was sad about the newest ‘tragedy,’ in my not-so-dramatic life.

Thank you for going to the dining hall with me in the middle of a snowstorm because I was hungry for the 10th time that day and because the ice cream machine was actually working for once.

Thank you for coordinating our getting ready schedules in the most efficient way possible so that we didn’t have to use the straightener or the curling iron at the same time.

Thank you for not turning the lights on before I woke up… even if it wasn’t until 1 p.m.

Thank you for always finding your way back to me at the end of the night so we could stumble home together. Thank you for being the (second) best dancer at the party.

Thank you for being a better roommate than I could have ever hoped for, for making me laugh until I cried, and for making our dorm room feel like a home. There is literally no one I would have rather spent my first year of college with.

See you move in day, Em! Thank you for the best freshman year.