The driver glanced in the mirror.

“Getting out here?”

I looked at Lily again.

“No,” I said.

“Please keep going.”

He closed the doors.

A passenger behind us sighed.

I moved the bag out of the aisle and sat back down beside my daughter.

The moment the bus pulled away, she exhaled.

I had never heard a child sound quite so relieved by a missed stop.

“Tell me why you’re afraid,” I said softly.

She turned her backpack so the front faced the seat.

“Last night I woke up because I wanted water.”

I waited.