The soft hum of the airplane engines filled the cabin as Jake settled into his window seat, stretching his legs as much as he could in the cramped row. Next to him, his little sister Aby was bouncing with excitement, her seatbelt already fastened, backpack on her lap, and a giant grin stretched across her face.

“We’re flying!” she whispered loudly, like it was some kind of secret mission. “In the sky!”

Jake chuckled. “Yeah, that’s usually how planes work.”

Aby leaned over him to press her face against the window, her breath fogging up the glass. “Do you think we’ll see clouds up close? Like, actually see them right outside?”

“Unless the pilot forgets how to fly,” Jake joked.

Aby shot him a look. “Not funny.”

Across the aisle, their parents were settling in, already pulling out snacks and water bottles like it was a road trip instead of a flight. Their mom handed Jake a pack of gum and leaned over. “Chew this when we take off so your ears don’t pop.”

Jake nodded and tossed a piece to Aby, who dramatically unwrapped it like it was a top-secret mission.

The plane began to roll, and Aby grabbed Jake’s arm. “We’re moving. We’re moving! Oh my gosh, we’re actually going!”

Jake glanced at her, surprised. “You’ve flown before, haven’t you?”

“Not that I remember. And I was way smaller. This is different. This is now.”

As the plane lifted off the runway, Aby’s eyes got wide. “We’re flying… we’re really flying!!”

Jake leaned his head back against the seat, smiling. “Welcome to the sky, Aby.”

About an hour into the flight, Aby was flipping through the airline magazine, circling snacks she wanted even though they weren’t on the menu. “Can we get pretzels? And Sprite? And maybe the cookies?”

“We’ll see what the snack cart has,” Jake said, pulling out his earbuds. “You’re acting like this is a five-star restaurant.”

She smirked. “It’s an air restaurant. With wings.”

Their mom turned around from across the aisle. “You two doing okay?”

Jake nodded. “We’re good. She’s building a menu.”

Their dad added, “Just don’t let her talk to the pilot.”

Aby grinned. “I was gonna ask if I could press a button.”

Jake laughed. “Please don’t.”

The rest of the flight passed with laughs, snacks, and Aby asking a million questions about how planes work, where they were flying over, and why the flight attendant smiled so much.

And as the plane started its descent, she looked out the window one more time and whispered, “I don’t wanna land yet. This is too cool.”