Freshman year is an exciting time, and not just because you finally get to launch a serious academic career. Just look around you: with thousands of never-before-seen angelic faces, it’s impossible to not have butterflies catapulting around your stomach each time your sleep-deprived eyes meet those of a mysterious, sexy, purple-clad stranger. Sparks will fly. You may find your mind wandering as you daydream about asking this stranger “Are you heading to the Deuce tonight?” While everyone has different preferences and little turn-ons, if you’re also a wide-eyed Northwestern freshman, we’re pretty sure that we can guess whom you’ll be into.
The Unattainable Upperclassman
You see him across the room in one of your lectures and boom, instant crush. Your heartbeat accelerates when he raises his hand in class to answer those questions that no one knows answers to, his voice oozing with sophistication. You look forward to seeing what outfit he’ll wear each morning as he leisurely strolls in, although it probably doesn’t matter because anything looks good on him. Your eyes widen when you watch him artistically doodle in his notebook on the other side of the lecture hall. You find yourself daydreaming about talking to him one day instead of just painfully craning your neck to creepily stare at him, trying to mask the obvious drool threatening to fall out of your open mouth. You consider pulling a Mean Girls and asking him to tutor you, praying that getting his number will turn him from unattainable to Deuce date material.
The Hottie Down the Hall
This happens to everyone. It doesn’t matter if she lives right across the hall or on an entirely different floor, you WILL crush on someone in your building. You consistently find yourself wandering the hallways in hopes of “happening to” stumble upon this hottie. She’s doing homework in the common room? Suddenly you have a paper to write. She’s doing laundry? Clumsy you just accidentally spilled your coffee all over your white shirt. And you’re already sprinting to the laundry room even before the stain sets in. She’s in the kitchen? Who cares if you were just in the dining hall? Better start looking for recipes because you now need to figure out how to cook an elaborate microwaveable meal! It’s inevitable you’ll run into each other living in the same building, so how bad can it be to take fate into your own hands? Just prepare a good excuse to sidestep the inescapable awkwardness when that acute and inquisitive friend of yours interrogates you on why you two always happen to be in the same place at the same time.
Dining Hall Cutie
You two live on the same side of campus and happen to always eat around the same time. You’re excited every time you see her, whether in a floral dress at 11 a.m. or in sweats at 7 p.m. One day when you two stand on opposite sides of the salad bar and flash coy smiles at each other, you can tell it’s literally going to be the beginning of a love story to end all love stories. Next, all you need to do is sneakily watch her throughout the entire dinner, run to follow her when she gets up to go to the dessert table, and keep your eyes focused on her hovering hand as you reach out to grab the same cookie as her, bumping against her in hopes that your first spoken word of “sorry” will lead to a happily ever after of meal swipes.
Frat Party Cinderella
It’s one of your first frat parties and you lock eyes first with his Adidas sneakers. Your gaze travels upward to his graphic tee, and you’re already in love by the time you see his backwards hat. You strike up a conversation as per usual, barely hearing each other as your voices get drowned out by the music, but you know you’re crushing hard. Well, either that or it’s the alcohol. Suddenly, someone taps his shoulder and pulls him away from the crowd. You’re left without his phone number or Snapchat, but only a blurry memory. Instead of a magical shoe, all that’s dropped is your heart.