Last Saturday, I lost my childhood best friend, Elio, whose life was taken in a senseless act of violence. I miss you so much, buddy. Tears wouldn’t stop falling as I looked at our childhood pictures yesterday. Every photo felt like a heartbeat from another time. I can’t even put into words how devastated I was when I heard the news. I’ve never experienced a brotherhood like ours, one that truly transcended friendship.

I've been writing and rewriting this in my head for a while now. Everything has been so surreal since you left us. Our lives have shifted on every single aspect: emotionally, spiritually, professionally, even politically. The impact of your death has hit us and has hit the entire country like a shock wave. It felt like an earthquake that shook us into disarray.

I have known Elio since I was twelve years old. At that time, we formed part of a small circle of friends, but later it just dwindled down to ourselves. For six years at school, every break, every recess, every spare moment we spent them together.

Two days ago, heaven gained a new angel and that angel was you. Two days have passed, and the whole ouse feels like a huge memory box filled with your things but missing your presence.

I see us in every corner playing, pulling pranks on Mom, being loud, trying to find the chocolate our parents hid, yelling and making fun of each other, and most importantly, being there for each other.

His brutal departure breaks our hearts... His life was cut short by a criminal bullet. He will forever be remembered as a gentle young man with a comforting smile, a loyal friend whose presence brought peace and unity.

Elio was the kind of person that liked everyone and was liked by everyone in return. He was the kind of friend you could share anything with. He had dreams of doing a PhD in chemistry and was accepted for a double diploma between Saint Joseph University in Beirut and the University of Nantes in France.

With a heart filled with sadness and grief, I mourn our dear student Elio from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) family, who was unjustly taken away by a treacherous weapon while in the prime of his youth. He graduated with sincere effort and rare determination. I supervised his research project for his Master's Degree and he graduated in June 2025!

Elio wasn’t just a cousin to me, he was the older brother I never had. He could brighten any room he walked into no matter how dull the energy was or how heavy the situation felt, Elio always found a way to lift it.