"Elle, oh my god," Amanda said with tears in her eyes, after Elle told her what had happened.
"Amanda, I know you're so disappointed in me and so upset and I'm so terribly sorry. I really didn't-" Elle hysterically cried, as Oliva rubbed her shoulders in support.
"Hey, hey," Amanda said as she rushed towards Elle and grabbed her by the hands. "What do YOU have to be sorry about?"
"Amanda, I should have known better than to go to a party and take a drink from someone I didn't know. I shouldn't have gone into his room, but he called me pretty, and Mom said that whenever a man calls you pretty, you have to go with him because you can never miss an opportunity to-" Elle couldn't breathe and started hyperventilating.
"Elle, baby," Amanda said as she pulled her sister into her arms. "Come on, deep breaths. In through the nose, and out through the mouth." Amanda breathed slowly with her sister.
"Amanda, I'm so so sorry," Elle was crying.
"Sweetie, I need you to stop apologizing to me." Amanda looked her sister right in the eyes, still trying to calm her down. "The only people who need to apologize are the boys who did this to you."
"Yes, honey, you don't need to blame yourself at all," Olivia said as she grabbed one of Elle's hands.
"I just don't know what to do, guys, I don't know," Elle sobbed to her sister and to Olivia. "I tried to go to class the next day and act like nothing happened but I couldn't do it. I couldn't do it. I felt like they were everywhere or like they were following me. I didn't know what to do so I left and I came here."
"And you did the right thing by coming here, baby, you need to know that," Amanda said, softly.
"Amanda, I'm sorry I didn't tell you right when it happened. I just know you're busy and you're a mom now and I just didn't want to bother you. I thought I could handle it." Elle cried, but started to catch her breath a little bit.
"Honey, yes, Jessie is my baby, but you were my first baby. I never want you to think that you can't come to me for help. I am NEVER too busy for you, you need to understand this." Amanda said lovingly.
"I just don't know what to do. I want all of this to stop." Elle said softly.
"How about you go jump in the shower and get in your pajamas," Amanda started, as her voice started to quiver and more tears fell from her eyes, "and then you and I will get in bed and I will hold you like I did when you were a little girl and you can cry all you want and then tomorrow, we can figure out what you want to do."
"Okay," Elle said as she wiped her eyes and walked to the bathroom.
Olivia turned to Amanda.
"Amanda, are you okay?" Olivia said, softly.
"No. I'm not," Amanda wiped the tears from her eyes. "My sister was gang raped and she didn't feel like she could tell me. She told you."
"At least she told somebody, and she did tell you." Olivia said as she put her hand on Amanda's shoulder for support.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. This isn't about me. It's about her right now." Amanda said with a sigh.
"What can I do to help?" Olivia said.
"Is there any way you can take Jessie for the night and watch her? I need to give Elle 100% of my attention and love right now. I need to be there for her."
"Of course, absolutely," Olivia said.
With that thought, Amanda and Olivia went to pack an overnight bag for Jessie and Olivia and Jessie headed out to go meet Noah and Lucy back at Olivia's home.
Soon, Elle got out of the shower and crawled into Amanda's bed.
"Amanda?" Elle said quietly.
"Yes, baby," Amanda softly responded.
"Can I sleep in your bed tonight? Please?"
"Of course," Amanda said as she pulled Elle into her arms. Elle started to cry.
"Do you want to talk about anything?" Amanda said, giving her sister a kiss on the forehead.
"I just don't even know what to say. Everything just hurts." Elle said quieter than before.
Elle and Amanda sat in silence for a few moments before Elle opened her mouth.
"Amanda, can I ask you something?" Elle said softly.
"Of course, baby," Amanda said, as Elle sat up and looked at her sister.
"Does this mean I'm not a virgin anymore?"
"You've never had sex before?" Amanda asked her.
"No. This was...my first time." Elle said, as she hung her head.
"Honey, this was not your first time. This was not sex. It was assault." Amanda said sharply.
"What do you mean?" Elle asked her.
"You lose your virginity when YOU decide to give that part of you away to somebody. Nobody else gets to ever make that choice for someone else. You are the only person who can make that choice." Amanda said, firmly.
"Oh," Elle said quietly.
"Can I tell you something else?" Amanda asked her. Elle nodded her head as Amanda took another deep breath in and started to speak again. "What mom told you about never saying no to a boy who calls you pretty? That's bullshit. You do not EVER have to go anywhere with anyone just because they call you pretty. You are worth more than that. You don't owe anybody anything because they call you pretty. It's really important that you know this."
"Amanda, I'm so sorry that I didn't tell you sooner," Elle said as she looked at her sister.
Amanda didn't respond. Instead, she pulled her sister close to her again and let her cry. All night. Until she fell asleep. But Amanda didn't sleep. She stayed up all night, keeping a watchful eye on her baby sister. She knew that her sister was hurting, but she didn't even know the hurt that was to come. This was only the beginning.
