“Do you ever think about that day when you first saw me?” Elo asked.
“Every day,” Sky said.
“Do you wish it had been different?” Sky asked.
“I wish I hadn’t been hurt,” Elo said. “But I don’t wish we never met. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“Same,” Sky said.
They sat in comfortable silence.
“What do you think little Eloin would say if she saw us now?” Sky asked.
Elo smiled.
“She’d say, ‘We made it,’” Elo said. “‘We did more than that. We thrived.’”
Sky leaned her head on Elo’s shoulder.
“I’m proud of us,” Sky said.
“Me too,” Elo said.
Below them, the house glowed warm and golden. Inside was family. Love. Safety.
Elo closed her eyes for a moment.
She’d spent so many years fighting. Now, finally, she could rest—not because the work was done, but because she’d done enough.
She opened her eyes, looked up at the stars, and whispered to the eight-year-old girl she used to be.
“We made it,” she said. “We’re safe. We’re loved. We’re free. Thank you for holding on. Thank you for surviving. I’m so proud of you.”
A shooting star streaked across the sky.
“Ready to go in?” she asked Sky.
“Yeah,” Sky said.
They climbed down, went inside, and closed the door behind them.
Two survivors.
Two friends.
Two women who had proven that survival is powerful, healing is possible, and love—love is everything.
