I open my eyes, roll over and check to see if I have received a text from my best friend. Usually, I don’t have any notifications when I first wake up, but I just have to look. As I get up and get ready to start my day, a slight feeling of emptiness sets in; the morning is when I feel the most alone.

Before I leave for school, I send a quick text to my boyfriend and then I am on my way. Compared to last year, I always got to see him in the halls and now I have to walk by all the old places where we used to hug, kiss and laugh. I usually look for little things like texts to help put me in a better mood. He usually won’t respond right away because he sleeps in a little later than I do, and when he does finally text me, I am in class. Usually around my lunch period is when I am free to text, but right as I get free, he has class. It is really hard to send texts while knowing they won’t be answered or even looked at for a while. We try to fit in a few small talk conversations throughout the school day, but that’s about it.

After a long day of school, all I want to do is to sit back, relax and talk to the one person I have been dying to talk to all day, or maybe even FaceTime him. Even though I’m free and out of school, he usually has two more classes left in his day, making me wait even longer just to be able to hear his voice or talk about our days.

As a result of our very different schedules, I try to stay as busy as possible. The more time you have to sit around, the more time you have to think, which can get very hard at times. Going to the gym after school puts me in my own little world and helps get things off my mind. Also, I’ve realized it helps to hang out with friends or do everyday things like cleaning up around the house or doing homework.

While making myself busy, I constantly find myself checking my phone. Usually I don’t have any notifications, but, again, I just have to look. Being in a long distance relationship, you learn to get excited over the little things; you get excited over a text, butterflies when you get a Snapchat and when you get a call or FaceTime, there is no better feeling in the world.

Once the time rolls around to 7:30 p.m., I begin to feel a little anxious and I notice I’m checking my phone more frequently because I know my favorite part of the day is coming up. You learn to enjoy the little things, so even though I constantly keep checking my phone to find myself disappointed throughout the day, I know a steady conversation always takes place when it is time for bed. We prefer FaceTime because being able to talk and see one another is 100 times better than calling or texting. Although some days he may have work until really late, which can be a little hard, I try not to take the time we have to talk for granted.

One of the harder things to get used to, especially at the beginning of the year, was accepting the fact that he was going to meet new people and do new things without me. I have always trusted my boyfriend, but sometimes you cannot help but get nervous or jealous. A little knot would always appear in my stomach when I saw new people or places in his pictures. It’s very hard. But again, the trust is there so that helps to ease my thoughts.

Since he goes to school about three hours away, we get to see each other pretty often.  The longest we have gone without seeing each other is about three and a half weeks. The days and weeks seem to last longer during this period. Staying strong and muscling through the hard times is something I’ve become very good at.

When the countdown that I’ve been keeping up with in my head has finally made it down to about three or four days, I am nothing but excited. Butterflies begin to creep again into my stomach and there is nothing else I can think of except for seeing him again.

Finally, the moment I have been waiting for almost a month is about to happen and, honestly, there is nothing you can do to prepare for it. My heart is pounding and I can feel my hands getting very sweaty. The second you see each other, you feel like the happiest person in the world and it seems like you’re going to feel like that forever. We just hug and it seems like we’ll never have to let go. But as the days go by, you want to make the best out of every second you have together, but there’s always the thought of having to say goodbye and being alone again in your head. From my experiences, you have to try your hardest to stay positive and I do exactly that.

There has never been a moment where I have thought twice about being in our relationship. There’s so much to look forward to in the future and getting through this rough patch is only going to make us stronger.

Personally, I believe that if a couple doesn’t plan to go to a school close by, or even the same college, long distance isn’t worth it. One year of being apart is enough and I can’t imagine how hard it would be doing this for an additional four years.

While being in a long distance relationship is one of the hardest things to go through emotionally, you know it’s worth it when you finally get to see your best friend and simply spend time with them. The key to making it through such a long year is constantly reminding yourself that although it may seem like forever, it’s only temporary.

With only three and a half months left in the semester to go, I’m looking forward to summer break and not having to think of long distance for a while. No more feeling alone, no more having to wait hours for a text, no more having to rely on technology to communicate. It’s all going to feel like a dream come true. Every second that passes by is a second closer to not having to be apart from my best friend.