We all say we will stay in touch after graduation, but we don't. And that's not a bad thing at all. Of course, everyone gets busy as we all transition into that college lifestyle. We make new friends and we change our priorities as well as our own character. We naturally grow apart and that's just life.

The people I did stay in touch with were the ones who shared similar values as me. Among the four of us, family and education were all we truly cared about and we didn't make time for distractions. What we described as "distractions" go along the lines of partying and relationships. Especially since this is our first year and maybe, later on, we can look at those distractions as something worthwhile but at this time in our lives, we aren't concerned about making time for that.

I still have other friends back home but I only met up with my closest friends who made time to meet up. Every girl has an inner squad of friends that they'll always tell everything to. These girls are essentially your bridesmaids. They'll be in your lives for a very long time.

I'm the only one from our group that went out of state for school in New York whereas most of my friends stayed in Virginia. I thought I'd never really talk to most of the people I went to high school with just because I lived far away now and focused on schoolwork. But I was most excited to see my friends who always had my back, who are always ready to lend a hand, who got me through the struggles of high school. I did not get to see some of my friends due to traveling and leaving for school early. May, MJ, and Bee made time to have a girls night out.

The first night, we went to the movies to watch "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse." Of course, it was raining and we were stuck in traffic so we missed about 20 minutes of the beginning and chose seats right in the middle of the aisle, annoying the packed J row. If you haven't seen the movie yet, you must!

The Thursday morning after, we went to Tyson's Corner mall and browsed through the different stores. They helped me find the correct shade of foundation at Sephora because I don't know much about makeup. May convinced MJ and me to try sushi. I never really liked any seafood or the smell of fish, let alone eating raw fish! I attempted to try sushi when I was 11-years-old, but I couldn't swallow it down. Instead, I gagged it into a napkin.

May says it's probably because it wasn't made fresh and this time, it'll be tasty. We tried the California roll, the scorpion, and shrimp tempura, all cooked inside. Baby steps. My favorite was the California roll and I want to actually go out and try more sushi. It surprised me more than I expected.

Saturday evening, we went out to eat at a Turkish restaurant where I ordered a dish that I thought was a gyro wrap but ended up being a gigantic beef patty. I don't think I've eaten this much in one sitting EVER. We were all in a blissful meat coma. But we managed to still go to Magnolia Dessert Bar to try a green tea waffle cake and ice cream. And of course, to commemorate this day, we all went into their small but well-decorated bathroom to take pictures. We tried our best given the dim light.

My friends already headed back to school. I didn't realize how much I missed spending time with them. I wish we could have all gone to the same school and been suitemates. High school and college friends are different. May, MJ, and Bee, I've known them more than five years and I miss our conversations and stories. Coming back home to them gave me a sense of nostalgia. My college friends are AMAZING, but the girls I grew up with, my sisters, will always hold a special place in my heart.