Free Free Falling by Kirsty Moseley

kill his battery too.
    We ran, holding hands, laughing. I enjoyed the sensation of
my hair whipping back, and the wind blowing in my face. I liked the adrenalin
and the fear of being caught. For some reason all of those things made my heart
thrum in my chest and a smile stretch across my face. I felt kind of free, more
alive somehow. We ran until I couldn’t do it anymore. When my lungs felt like
they were on fire, I pulled him to a stop and put my hands on my knees, gasping
for breath, and swaying a little on my feet from the alcohol. I looked up at
him to see him leaning against the wall, his arms crossed casually. He looked
the picture of ease as he smirked at me, not even a little out of breath even
though we’d been running flat out for a good three minutes.
    “You need to get fitter, little rebel. If you’re going to be
a good criminal then you need to be able to make a quicker getaway than that,”
he teased, raising one eyebrow at me.
    I laughed and stood up, clutching at my ribs as they burned
from the effort of breathing. I honestly did need to get fitter, he wasn’t even
breathing hard yet I was sweating like a turkey just before thanksgiving. “I
think I’ll stick to that one act. I’ve never done anything even remotely bad in
my life,” I replied, grinning like a mad woman. I was actually still on a high
that I had done that to Luke’s car; payback certainly was going to be a bitch
on this occasion. 
    He grinned and shook his head, obviously amused. “Well then
I’m glad I was there to witness your demise,” he teased, winking at me. “Come
on then, let’s get you home so you can puke then sober up.” Before I could even
answer, he turned and started walking back the way we came, not even bothering
to wait for me.
    “I’m Maisie,” I said, trying to keep up with him as he
walked quickly down the road. I stumbled every other step because I had no
shoes on and was still feeling the effects of the alcohol. It was harder to
keep in a straight line at this slower pace, with him not holding my hand and
dragging me along.
    He turned his head and looked at me over his shoulder, as if
he was deciding if he wanted to tell me his name or not. After a couple of
seconds he obviously decided he did want to. “Zach,” he muttered, shrugging. 
    I followed him down the road, wondering if I was about to be
killed. This was a classic thing you should never do, go off with a stranger
for a ride; this was what my parents had drummed into me since I could
remember. ‘Never accept a ride from a stranger, no matter what they promise
you’ but here I was, following a guy I had only just met to some unknown place.
I really was stupid.
     

 
     
    Chapter 6
     
     
    As we walked down the street he tossed the rock I’d thrown
at Luke’s car into the shrubs. “Why did you bring that?” I asked curiously as I
jogged to catch him up.
    He smirked at me. “You wanted me to leave your fingerprints
all over the rock that smashed his window? If you want we can just go back and
slip a confession on there with your name and address, telling the cops where
to find you,” he suggested, laughing quietly to himself.
    “I didn’t think about fingerprints. Oh my God, am I going to
get into trouble for doing that?” My eyes widened as I started to feel
nauseous. I’d just broken the law and vandalised someone else’s property and
that fact was only just sinking in. My heart was racing in my chest as I
stopped walking and started to panic.
    Zach laughed and grabbed my elbow, shaking his head. “Nah,
no one was around, there’s no CCTV on that street, and I removed the evidence.
As far as you’re concerned, the car was in perfect condition when you got out
and left it.” He looked at me sternly as he started to drag me along again.
    I thought about what he said. No one else but him saw me do
it, and after tonight I wouldn’t even see him again anyway, so there was no
chance I was getting into trouble for this, at