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phone away from her ear as he yelled in response, asking her where she was.
    “P-please don’t yell.” She was stressed out and scared, trying hard not to cry. She knew that her plans to reach San Diego were over, and she was afraid of what was going to happen next. Charlie’s voice was softer when he spoke again.
    “I know, Charlie. I’m sorry…. Uhmmm… I’m in Texas, just past San Antonio.” Charlie raised his voice in disbelief but then quieted again as he tried to help her decide what to do.
    “I’m scared to call them. They’re going to be so mad…. They did?” She turned to me and repeated, “My parents called the police. I am in so much trouble.” Her face crumpled, and I reached over to hold her hand.
    “Your parents obviously love you a lot. You need to call them and tell them where you are,” I told her.
    “His name is Brian, Charlie. I got into a little trouble at the last station, and he helped me. He’s really nice…. He’s eighteen….” He said something else, and she laughed. “Don’t worry, big brother, I’m not his type.” Then she sobered again.
    “I can’t… I’m scared. I…. You’d do that? I love you too, Charlie,” she told him and then looked at me and whispered, “He’s going to call my mom on three-way and stay on with me.” Her brother was a smart guy and obviously loved his little sister. Even from hundreds of miles away, he still looked out for her.
    “Hi, Mom,” Sarah said timidly into the phone. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
    I thought that her mom asking how she was before asking where she was told a lot about her love for Sarah. Her mother’s first priority was her daughter’s welfare. Of course, the inevitable question came soon after.
    “I’m on a bus in Texas. I think the next big city is El Paso. I know, Mom, I’m so sorry…. Please, Mama, don’t cry.” A huge tear rolled down Sarah’s face, and she tried to keep her voice steady. The rest of the conversation consisted of a lot of one-word agreements from Sarah punctuated by long silences in which I’m sure her mother alternated between anger and comfort. At one point Sarah asked me when we should reach El Paso, and I told her it would still be several hours. Even though Sarah tried to protest, telling her mother she could take the next bus back to Florida, it sounded like her parents were adamant that they would be on the next plane to El Paso, and her mother assured her they would be at the station when she got there. Honestly, I think Sarah was relieved.
    “Thank you,” Sarah told me after she finally hung up with her family after an assurance that the phone would remain on. She didn’t need to say any more.
    The irony of the situation was not lost on me. I had talked her out of the very thing I was doing, risking everything to follow my boyfriend to California. Checking the schedule, I saw we still had a full eight hours before the bus stopped in El Paso. In just over twenty-four hours, I would be in San Diego. The thought both thrilled and frightened me. In San Diego, I would be closer to Jamie, but then I would also be farther away from my parents. Thinking about that made me think about Carolyn, and I decided to text her again just to let her know that I was okay.
    Having resolved things with her parents, Sarah was more upbeat. We played a couple of games on her phone, which took us through lunch in Fort Stockton. After that, the lack of sleep from the night before started to catch up with me, and I found I couldn’t keep my eyes open and would periodically doze for a minute before jerking myself awake again.
    “You look exhausted,” Sarah observed.
    “I didn’t get much sleep last night,” I agreed. She bunched up the sweatshirt she had taken off that morning and offered it to me as a pillow.
    “I’ll wake you up when we get to El Paso. Why don’t you get a couple of hours’ sleep?” She covered my hand with hers, and I nodded, smiling slightly. Turning a little in the seat,