AVA'S POV
There's something unnerving about watching a room fill with people who have spent their lives changing the world.
Leaders. Innovators. Survivors. Their names were in headlines, their work printed in textbooks, and here I was, standing backstage in a tailored navy pantsuit, heart pounding like it hadn't read the script.
Melanie had texted just before I arrived:
"Remember: you're not here because of your last name. You're here because of your voice. Use it."
I repeated her words to myself like a mantra as the final panelist before me wrapped up. I took a deep breath, letting the noise of the audience dissolve into a hum behind the velvet curtain.
Then they called my name.
I walked onto the stage to a scattering of applause, not the thunderous kind reserved for politicians or media giants. But enough. Enough to feel real. Enough to remind me I wasn't invisible anymore.
The moderator greeted me with a firm handshake and a gracious smile. The theme behind me read:
