The hum of the highway filled the car, steady and low, like white noise. Outside, the world was still black, only the occasional passing streetlight flickering across the windshield. Dino was driving now, one hand draped over the wheel, Lorena silent in the passenger seat with her hood up, head leaning against the window. In the back, Aurora sat in the middle, legs curled slightly to the side, her head tilted toward the gap between the seats. Joško was on her right, hoodie pulled over his head, eyes half-lidded but nowhere near asleep. Franka sat on her other side, already lost to dreams, her steady breathing mixing with the quiet hum of the car. Aurora shifted, trying to get comfortable. “Remind me again why we left at three in the morning?” she mumbled, voice rough with sleep. “So we beat traffic,” Dino said without much conviction. “You’re all soft,” Joško teased, his voice low so it wouldn’t wake the others. “When we were kids, you could stay up all night.” “That was when staying up meant watching movies in Lorena’s basement,” she replied. “Not sitting in a moving freezer for six hours.” Without thinking, Joško tugged the edge of his hoodie over her lap. “Here. You’ll warm up faster.” She glanced at him, a small smile tugging at her lips. “You’re just trying to keep me from falling asleep on Franka again.” “Maybe,” he said, shifting so his shoulder was flush against hers. “She kicks.” The seatbelt between them pressed awkwardly into her side until he hooked his arm behind her, almost like he was stretching, letting her lean into him. Her head found his shoulder easier than she expected, and for a while they didn’t talk—just shared the quiet, broken only by the tires against the road. In the darkness, Joško let his gaze flick down to her face. She was staring ahead, lost in thought, unaware of the way his thumb brushed lightly against her arm through the fabric. By the time the faint orange glow of a gas station appeared in the distance, Franka stirred, Lorena straightened in the front seat, and Aurora was already half-asleep against him. “Fuel and snacks?” Dino asked, slowing down. Joško just nodded, not ready to move yet.