At thirteen, Elo testified before her state legislature about child protection laws. At fourteen, she was invited to speak before a Congressional panel in Washington, D.C. Her testimony helped shape a bill that would later pass as the Eloin Act, strengthening protections for children in medical research and making it harder for anyone to bury harm in fine print.
Through it all, Sky was there.
Sky, who went to a different middle school but texted constantly.
Sky, who sat in the front row whenever she could, nodding encouragement from a sea of strangers.
Sky, who dragged Elo to the mall to try on ridiculous hats and eat too much candy when everything got too heavy.
In high school, Elo tried to live as normally as a teenage survivor-advocate could.
She joined the debate team. She made the honor roll. She went to football games and school dances and spent too many late nights studying.
One day, a girl in her English class approached her.
“My boyfriend gets really mean sometimes,” the girl said. “I don’t know if it’s normal.”
“What kind of mean?” Elo asked.
“He calls me stupid,” the girl said. “Says nobody else would want me. He reads my messages and tells me who I can talk to.”