Part 4 (1/2)

'Too right! You should've seen her face afterwards!'

'But, Nancy...' said Ethan. 'It just doesn't seem...'

Kat turned to him and leaned in conspiratorially. 'She reckons that that one jump has got her more action than she's ever had in her whole life! Apparently it's the perfect way to impress men!'

Ethan laughed and headed over to the counter, then turned at the sound of the cafe door bursting open behind him. A guy stood in the doorway, his hands raised in the air like he was some kind of returning dignitary. He was wearing the same outfit as Kat and Johnny; another team member, Ethan guessed.

'It's OK, everyone, I'm here,' the guy said, a smug smile slapped across his face. 'You can all relax.'

Ethan couldn't help but notice that no one in the cafe seemed in any way interested in whoever this idiot was.

'That's Jake,' said Kat as the figure turned, winked and strutted over. When he reached Kat, he rested his arm on her shoulder like he was doing her a favour. They were clearly an item though Ethan noticed that she seemed to shrink a little, like a candle fighting to stay alight. Not that Jake noticed. All he seemed to care about was whether everyone else was watching him.

'Hey, babe,' said Jake loudly to Kat. 'Missed me? Course you have!'

Kat nodded and sort of smiled as Jake leaned over to kiss her cheek. 'This is Ethan,' she said, gesturing towards him.

The look Jake gave him wasn't exactly friendly.

'Oh, the new boy,' he said dismissively, addressing Kat as though Ethan didn't exist. 'Busy tonight?' he asked, moving in to nibble her ear.

She shook her head, pulled away from him a little, and shrugged.

'You are now,' said Jake. 'We're out tonight. Just you and me. I've got a table booked. I'll pick you up in the Porsche. It's gonna be amazing, trust me!' He leaned in for another kiss.

'You own a Porsche?' said Ethan, not quite believing what he'd heard. Jake looked no older than Johnny. How the h.e.l.l could he own a Porsche?

Jake glanced at him, nodded, then turned back to Kat, pulling her close.

'Ethan's going to do a jump too aren't you, Ethan?' said Kat, smiling. 'Sam's got him working all over the centre.' She gave a laugh, but it didn't sound quite as happy and full of life as the last time Ethan had heard it.

Jake released Kat, and this time he looked Ethan up and down like he was really checking him out. Then he shook his head. 'Great,' he said. 'That's all we need; another rookie in the sky.'

'I didn't know people were born born skydiving,' Ethan retorted, before his brain kicked in to tell him to keep his mouth shut. skydiving,' Ethan retorted, before his brain kicked in to tell him to keep his mouth shut.

'You what what?' said Jake.

He shrugged. 'We've all got to start somewhere, haven't we? I mean, I know it's hard to believe, but I guess even you had to do a first jump once upon a time.'

Ethan saw Jake's eyes narrow as he came closer, until there were just inches between them. 'You haven't even jumped yet. What would you know about anything?' he said icily.

Ethan suddenly felt very sure that he and Jake hadn't just got off on the wrong foot, but were about to use those feet to kick each other round the cafe but then Johnny strolled in and put his arm round Kat.

'I see you've met some of the team,' he said easily, grinning at Ethan. 'Natalya's disappeared again, but she does that. And Luke's around somewhere. Probably ironing the creases in his forehead.'

Kat laughed; Jake didn't. But Johnny had drawn his attention away from Ethan and now he grabbed Kat again, dislodging Johnny's arm.

Ethan smiled at Johnny. 'I'm doing a tandem,' he said, and just saying it felt completely amazing, like he'd taken a sudden and definite step into something that was completely different from the rest of his life. 'Sam's taking me. Perk of the job apparently.'

Jake shook his head, but Johnny buzzed at this. 'That's awesome!' he said. 'You'll love it! When's the jump?'

Ethan shrugged. 'Need to get the forms signed first, then I guess it's just down to Sam. Does he always take new staff up for free?'

Jake frowned. 'Sam's losing it,' he said. 'I mean, it makes sense to take people like us up, but he can't go around giving just anyone a free jump, can he? What's wrong with him? Age getting to him? Gulf War Syndrome finally kicking in?'

'I'm not complaining,' said Ethan. 'I can't wait, to be honest.' Then he turned and looked at Jake. 'It's not like you have to be superhuman, is it? Even Nancy's done it.'

Jake opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything Kat pulled him away, turning back to wink at Ethan. 'Well, you certainly know how to make friends and influence people, don't you?' she said softly before following Jake out of the cafe.

Ethan looked over at Johnny, who laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. 'Don't worry about Jake,' he said. 'He can't help being a total d.i.c.k.'

Ethan laughed. 'So what's with him and Kat then?' he asked, thinking that they just didn't seem right together. 'And what's with the att.i.tude and the need to mention the Porsche?'

'Jake's deluded,' Johnny told him. 'Bit of a t.o.s.s.e.r in most ways really. Thinks he owns everything he can see, including people. And he loves everyone to know just how rich he is.'

'And he and Kat... ?'

Johnny shook his head. 'They've a history, that's all. Doesn't make sense to anyone, least of all me.'

'Why's that?'

Johnny grinned, his eyes glinting. 'What, with me around? How does he even get a look in?'

Ethan was about to reply when Nancy called over from the serving hatch. She was running low on chips would he be a love and nip round the back to get some out of the freezer.

Ethan made his way outside. Johnny followed, jumped on his motorbike, pulled on his helmet and kicked the engine into life.

'See you tomorrow?' said Ethan.

Johnny nodded, then spun his bike round and floored it.

Ethan watched as Johnny wheelied out of the centre, one-handed. He shook his head and smiled. Something told him that if he had a bike, he'd probably do just the same or at least try it and fall off.

Overhead, the clouds started to break and the sky cleared. Ethan breathed in deeply. He felt happy, but it was more than that. Now that he was doing a tandem skydive he felt like he belonged. He had a reason to be there at FreeFall; a purpose.

And Sam had given it to him.

CHAPTER 6

'Honestly, Mum, I'll be fine. It's totally safe.'

It was early the following morning and Ethan was doing his best to persuade his mum to sign the forms for Sam. He'd managed to get up in time to catch her before she headed out to work. Dad was nowhere to be seen. He'd probably dossed at one of his mates' places after drinking himself into a stupor.

'Totally safe?' Ethan's mum was looking at him dubiously.

Ethan nodded. 'Absolutely,' he said. 'Totally.'