Thou Shalt not commit Flat-cest

Almost every Fresher knows the unwritten rule of never, under any circumstances, hook up with a flatmate. I however, despite being somewhat of a commitment-phobe before Uni , somehow managed to find myself committing the sin of flat-cest barely three months into my first year. Surprisingly, it wasn’t all that bad. Here are some pros and cons for anyone who may find themselves in the same situation.

Pros

1. Sharing body heat saves £

In halls you can crank up the heating as much as you like. But if your flat-cest hook-up lasts through until 2nd year (hats-off to you if it does by the way), you’ll save bundles on heating. Having someone to share body heat with is not only incredibly useful but it’s also an awful lot cheaper than turning the radiators on. It’s hard not to feel slightly smug when my housemates are suffering in their cold rooms. (They’re too stingy to turn the heating on, don’t feel sorry for them.)

whatever helps to keep warm…

2. Minimal effort required to meet up

I’m quite lazy. So when my housemate is wrapping up warm to brace herself for the mean streets of Selly in order to trek all the way down Dawlish to see her boyfriend, I can’t help but feel glad that all I have to do is pop across the corridor.

3. Sharing everything is cheaper

I’m stingy with money, even by student standards. Unfortunately, I’m also incredibly greedy, and food costs money. Luckily, the ever present worry about money is slightly diminished when living with your other half. Bulk buying is cheaper, even more so when you’re splitting the cost between two. Sometimes there’s even money left over for alcohol. And if he offers to pay for everything once in a while, who am I to say no?

Cons

1. They’ll see you at your very worst

I’m not the most graceful person at the best of times. I can just about force myself to seem like a normal human being for short periods of time but there’s no chance of maintaining this when he sees me almost 24/7. It is incredibly hard to seem alluring on a Sunday morning after Fab when you’re rushing to the toilet with mascara smeared down your face as your body tries to rid itself of the vodka you consumed the night before.

2. No excuse/escape from standing them up or cancelling last minute

If you’re not one for clinginess then things could get very awkward very quickly if they’re the intense type. The normal excuses for not meeting up all the time won’t work because, when you live in the room next to them, there’s nowhere to hide.

3. The ultimate: it gets awkward when it goes tits up 

Ah those awkward kitchen moments…

Perhaps the biggest fear of committing flat-cest is that you’ll ultimately break up and things will get incredibly awkward. Luckily we’ve managed to stay together so far but when we do occasionally argue things can get a little inconvenient. The dramatic effect of storming out of the room in rage is diminished quite a lot when you bump into each other half an hour later in the kitchen.