A Quiet Goodbye at the Edge of the Highway
Mia Turner stood alone at the small bus stop at the edge of Cedar Town. It was just after six in the evening, and the sky had turned a soft orange that spread across the hills. Cedar Town was quiet at this hour. Most shops along Main Street had already closed, and the only noise came from the hardware store’s flickering sign buzzing above the sidewalk.
She held a worn backpack by the strap. It was the same one she had used since high school, patched in two places and faded from years of sun. She kept squeezing the strap every few minutes without noticing. Her bus—the last bus out of Cedar Town for the day—was supposed to arrive at six-thirty.
She checked her phone again. Six-twenty. The signal was weak, as usual. Cedar Town never made it easy for people who depended on phones and apps. But maybe that was one of the things she was ready to leave behind.
A soft crunch of gravel made her turn. Mrs. Radley, her old neighbor, walked toward her carrying a paper bag from the diner.
“I had a feeling I’d find you here,” Mrs. Radley said with a warm smile. “Your mom told me you were catching the last bus.”
Mia nodded. “Yeah. I’m heading to Riverbend tonight.”
“I know.” Mrs. Radley stopped in front of her and held out the small paper bag. “You didn’t have dinner, I’m sure.”
Mia laughed, because it was true. “Thank you.”
Inside was a warm sandwich and a small cup of fries. It smelled like comfort. She sat down on the bench and took a bite. Mrs. Radley sat beside her.
“You’re nervous,” the older woman said gently.
“Kind of,” Mia admitted. “I’ve never lived anywhere else. Cedar Town is all I know.”
“That’s why you’re supposed to go,” Mrs. Radley said. “Life doesn’t move unless you do.”
Mia looked out at the road stretching far into the distance. Highway lights flickered on, one by one. She remembered every part of Cedar Town, from the dusty baseball field behind the school to the old bookstore where she bought her first mystery novel. She had dreamed for so long of moving to a bigger place, but now that it was actually happening, she felt the weight of it.
“You’ll make new memories,” Mrs. Radley said, reading her expression without needing to ask. “New places. New people who will know you for who you are now, not who you were at ten, or fifteen, or eighteen.”
Mia swallowed and nodded slowly. She knew the older woman meant well. And she was right.
A car pulled up near the stoplight. A familiar voice called her name. Mia saw her friend Caleb leaning out the window, waving wildly. He parked and jogged over.
“You really weren’t going to let me say goodbye, were you?” he asked, slightly out of breath.
“I thought you were working late,” Mia said.
“I told my boss it was an emergency,” he replied. “Which it is. You leaving is definitely an emergency.”
She laughed, and it eased something inside her chest.
He handed her a small, folded note. “Don’t open this until you’re on the bus.”
She tucked it into her pocket. “I’ll read it.”
Caleb looked at her for a long moment, then gave her a quick hug. “I’m proud of you,” he said. “I know you think you’re scared, but you’re brave.”
Before she could say anything, the distant rumble of an engine echoed down the road. They all turned. The bus rounded the corner, tall headlights bright in the fading evening light.
“That’s you,” Mrs. Radley said softly.
The driver slowed and pulled up to the small stop. The doors creaked open with a familiar hiss. Mia stood up slowly, her heart beating much faster now. She hugged Mrs. Radley and then Caleb.
“You’ll do great,” Caleb said softly. “Just send a message when you get there.”
“I will,” she promised.
She climbed the steps of the bus, the smell of diesel and old fabric surrounding her. A few passengers sat scattered inside, most looking tired from long days. She found a window seat halfway down. As she sat, she pressed her forehead lightly against the cool glass.
Outside, Caleb and Mrs. Radley waved. The bus driver checked his mirrors and pulled away from the stop. Cedar Town began to slide past the window, the streetlights turning into glowing streaks in her peripheral vision. She watched every building she knew by heart fall behind her, one after another.
For a moment, she wondered if she would miss it all too much. But then she remembered the note in her pocket. She unfolded it gently.
Caleb’s handwriting was messy but clear.
“You’re going to build a life that feels more like you. Don’t forget to look forward more than you look back.”
Mia smiled. The bus turned onto the highway, the road stretching wide and open ahead. Cedar Town grew smaller in the distance, but the world in front of her seemed larger with every passing mile.
For the first time that day, she felt ready to leave. Ready to begin. The last bus out of Cedar Town carried her into the night, and she let it take her exactly where she needed to go.
