When coming to college, I had many expectations of what my freshman year would be. On the top of that list was my roommate becoming my best friend. I could picture all of the fun we would have: being each other’s wing-woman, tons of late night deep talks, the cutest of instagramable pictures that would put everyone else and their roomie to shame. Basically every college-themed movie and college graduate further fueled my dream with the idea that my roommate and I would most definitely be the best of friends. Well, I am here to tell you that my roommate is not my best friend, and that is okay. Of course, sometimes you can’t help but be jealous of the girls down the hall who are literally roommate goals, but there are five reasons why not having your roommate as your best friend is just fine.
1. Your Stuff is Your Stuff
Do you ever get to that point in a friendship where your friends think they can just take your things without asking? Literally, you spend twenty minutes looking for that black tee, and your friend had it the whole time. Well, with your roomie NOT being your best friend, you never have to worry about your things disappearing (unless she’s a kleptomaniac which is a whole new issue).
2. It Doesn’t Matter If You Fight
If you have a minor disagreement or even an argument that could rival WW3, you aren’t really losing a friend. You don’t have to go through the whole awkward make-up phase and you can’t hold a grudge.
3. No Wing-woman, No Problem
This is the moment in time where woman empowerment is a thing. You are young, confident (or not, but now is the time to work on that) and do not need a wing-woman to help guide you through the night.
4. They Are the Best to Gossip With
They don’t really know your friends, you don’t really know theirs, so what better person to gossip with! They won’t be able to take sides and can offer some great advice as the outsider looking in.
5. Even Better Reason to Meet More People
Now is the best time to branch out and meet even more people! So what, you and your roommate aren’t best friends? Take it as an excuse to join a student org (or five), study at the library with kids in your math class or grab coffee with the girl who has the same shoes as you.
Your roommate may not be your “best friend”, but that does not mean you won’t be/aren’t already kind of friends. Even if you can already tell that this roomie situation isn’t going to lead to a lifelong friendship, still make the effort to keep the peace. Order take-out, watch Netflix or go out and explore together. You may not be able to force a friendship, but you can at least get some good memories in with one another.