If youve never been involved with someone who has roommates (don’t you wish he’d mentioned that on his internet dating profile?), you might not realize theres a lot more to it than you would otherwise think. Your man’s abode is likely the scene of some of your naughtier crimes and roommates can be a built-in audience for all of this, if you dont play by the rules.

Dating someone who lives with a few other people can be a lot of fun; it’s a great way to meet new friends and on any given night, chances are that at least one of them will have a fun idea for something exciting to do. But beware: there are certain paths that you must tread lightly and being the girlfriend in a roommate situation is definitely one of them.

Not to worry though; read the following simple rules and you should be just fine. Even so, you might want to whisper in your man’s ear that having his own place would certainly come with benefits!

1. Never walk to the bathroom in less clothing than you want to be caught in. Whether that means throwing on a t-shirt and underwear before a late-night scoot to the loo or making sure you’re fully covered, always assume one of the inhabitants of the house is waiting out there. Because when you are sneaking around in the buff, that’s when you will see them; and they you.

2. Before you get sexy busy with your guy, take a quick inventory of who’s home and who’s not. Let that be the basis of deciding whether to bite the pillow to muffle the sounds of letting your inner lion roar.

3. Speaking of sexy time, show courtesy and respect for your guy’s roommates. And that means not being known as “that” couple; the couple who lets the whole world know what’s going on behind closed doors. Keep the noise to a minimum.

4. Don’t forget that this is a shared living situation. That means the contents of the kitchen are divided and not all of it belongs to your man. Find out how before you raid the kitchen to satisfy your late night snack urge. If you don’t you will seriously piss off the locals.

5. Turn your flirt off. You really need to make an effort here to be totally platonic, even if you’re a natural flirt and don’t mean anything by it. Since the roommates share his living space, might overhear you having sex, and caught you sneaking to the bathroom in your birthday suit (did you miss number 1?), he’s probably going to be a bit more sensitive to any perceived flirtation with his roommates. Keep the harmony is all I’m saying.

6. It might be at the bottom of the list, but this is probably THE most important piece of advice I can give you. Repeat this over and over until you have it memorized; “I don’t live here”. You don’t pay rent, you’re dating one the roommates. And the other guys in the house are going to get tired of your dirty dishes, your laundry in the washing machine and your body in the shower. Yes, you’re entitled to feel comfortable at your boyfriend’s place; just don’t forget where you really live.