DropZone

Ethan said, ‘Yes,’ as Sam got into a skydiving position in front of him, his legs slightly apart, his arms out in front and bent, as if he was holding something heavy above his head.

As they ran through it again, a message came through over the ta

‘That’s us,’ said Sam. ‘Let’s go.’

Ethan followed, and with each step wondered just what the hell he was doing.

The minibus that transported people to the runway was the wrong side of knackered, so Ethan was relieved to see that the plane itself wasn’t in a similar state. Silently he followed Sam on board, sitting down between his legs. Everyone was wearing a helmet. It was loud inside, the engines mixing the air into a strangle of howls and revs and squeals. Ethan spotted Joh

Ethan felt Sam clip himself into his rig, clamping the two of them together, pulling in tight. A strap was then clipped to Sam. Ethan knew from what Joh

‘Well, if the plane’s shagged, you’re better off jumping than crashing with it’ had been Joh

The pilot said something over the speaker system that Ethan couldn’t understand, and the plane started to move.

He felt himself bumping off the floor as the plane gathered speed. Then his stomach disappeared and they lifted into the air.

Looking out through the window, Ethan watched as the ground fell away. He didn’t think it was a good time to mention that he’d never flown before.

After a few minutes Sam tugged on the harness again, tightening it even further. He flicked his wrist at Ethan, showing him the altimeter reading 10,000 feet. Ethan knew they jumped at 12,000.

It came around all too quickly. Ethan felt a tap on his shoulder and Sam gave a thumbs-up. Strapped in as he was, Ethan had little choice but to do as Sam did, so he soon found himself sitting with his feet hanging out of the open door of the plane.

He looked down between his feet at the ground below. Impossible to believe it was 12,000 feet away and that he was about to get back to it by falling.

Another tap.

Ethan turned to find Joh

Sam shouted the commands: ‘Head back, legs up, arms crossed.’

Ethan obeyed.

And they jumped into oblivion.

The world spun and flipped, flipped and spun. It was blue and green and green and blue. For a few seconds Ethan found it impossible to take in. And he couldn’t breathe. Every time he tried to take in air, it was whipped away. But despite the panic he was fighting, he was also smiling. He could feel it; he was gri

The view changed, became stable. Earth below, sky above. Ethan could see it now they were belly-to-earth. Two and a half miles below him, criss-cross roads and patchwork fields stretched away to nothing. It all looked so tiny and so beautiful. Ethan was amazed. And he knew – right then in that moment – that he wanted to do this again. Once would never be enough.

Sam tapped his shoulder and Ethan pulled his arms open.

He was skydiving!

‘Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!’ he screamed. He knew it wasn’t the most inspired thing to say, but he couldn’t think of anything else; he’d just jumped out of a plane! Joh

He felt his cheeks start to ache as the wind ripped past, dragging the breath from his lungs. Another tap on his shoulder. He crossed his arms and felt himself being almost ripped in half.

Ethan recognized the sound of the canopy opening and looked up as their descent was slowed to a gentle glide.

‘Want to steer?’ asked Sam.

Ethan was stu

Before he could refuse, Ethan had his hands clamped to the yellow loops attached to the steering lines of the canopy. He found that the slightest tug with either hand could alter their course.

‘DZ’s over there.’ Sam pointed, and Ethan was able to make out the airfield. ‘I’ll take over when you get us close enough.’

‘You sure?’ Ethan asked, hardly daring to believe Sam would let him take control up here even for a moment.

‘Wouldn’t say it if I wasn’t, Ethan.’

Ethan felt himself gri

A few minutes later, Sam took over, and as the ground approached, he shouted, ‘Feet up, knees up!’

Ethan did exactly that and they glided in, landing with a brief slide onto their backsides.

Joh

Sam unclipped Ethan and they stood up. It was all Ethan could do not to yell and scream and jump around like a loon. He felt amazing, on top of the world, completely and utterly alive.

Joh

Remembering that moment high above the earth, the sensation of falling from the plane, Ethan could think of only one thing to say.

He swung round to face Sam. ‘When can I do it again?’

Sam and Joh

10

Ethan was sitting on the sofa with his mum and Jo, watching the DVD of his jump. It was a couple of hours since he’d done the tandem with Sam, but he was still buzzing. And Jo hadn’t stopped laughing.

‘Check out your face!’ she said. ‘You look hysterical!’ On the screen Ethan’s face was being buffeted by the wind, his cheeks rippling.

‘I was doing a hundred and twenty miles an hour,’ he told her. ‘It’s pretty difficult to keep a straight face!’

‘I can’t believe that’s you,’ said his mum. She was sitting on the edge of the sofa, her hands clasped together. ‘Weren’t you scared?’

‘Not really,’ said Ethan, and he wasn’t lying. ‘You don’t have time to be scared. Sam just gets on with it, takes you through the training, and before you know it you’re at the door of the plane! Then you’re out. It’s such a rush!’

‘No way am I ever doing that,’ said Jo, watching as Sam pulled the ripcord and the main canopy exploded behind them. ‘It’s insane.’

‘It’s amazing,’ said Ethan. ‘Best thing I’ve ever done.’

The screen flicked to Ethan and Sam coming in to land.

‘Sam looks very forbidding,’ said his mum. ‘Does he ever smile?’

Ethan laughed. ‘He’s terrifying, but great.’

As though in response to Ethan’s mother’s question, Sam looked at the camera and smiled. Ethan didn’t think he’d ever forget that moment. To have people like Sam and Joh

The DVD finished and Ethan asked, ‘Want to watch it again?’

His mum and Jo nodded and he pressed PLAY.

The screen showed Ethan in the plane, strapped to Sam. But as they watched the footage again, the flat shook to the sound of the front door slamming shut. Dad was home.

Ethan saw his mum’s eyes close, her head fall forward a little. He moved to stop the DVD before his dad came into the lounge, but he was too late.

‘What’s this then? Playing happy families, are we?’

Ethan turned. His dad was leaning against the doorframe, finishing off a can of lager. For a moment no one said a word. The only sound came from Ethan’s tandem skydive on the TV.