You eat dinner with everyone

Dinner turns out to be a lot more fun than I expected. Jeff keeps the conversation moving while Chase cracks jokes from across the table, and even Doug eventually pulls himself away from his computer long enough to join in. Ariana fits into the conversation easily, laughing along and occasionally teasing Jeff about little things.

I find myself relaxing more as the night goes on. Looking around the table, I realize I might have actually gotten lucky with these roommates. Everyone’s different, but somehow the personalities seem to work together. After spending so much time on my own the last few years, it’s nice having people around.

After dinner, we clear the table and settle into the living room. We spend another hour talking about classes, campus, and random stories from our lives. Eventually, Chase grabs the remote.

“Alright, we’re watching something. Nobody’s allowed to study for the rest of the night.”

Doug sighs. “I wasn’t studying.”

“You’ve had that laptop open for three hours.”

“That’s unrelated.”

Everyone laughs, and we eventually settle on a movie. I lean back into the couch, surrounded by my new roommates, and for the first time since arriving on campus, I feel completely comfortable here.