Freefall Read Free Page A

it’s something you didn’t want anyway, you’ll let it go. If it’s what you want, you’ll do whatever it takes to get it back.”
    I glance over my shoulder wondering about Ben. Would I do whatever it takes to get him if Shira decides she wants him—or he decides he wants her?
    Noah pushes the cuff s of his army pants into his boots. I watch as he threads the laces all the way up and ties the ends in a knot. He takes care to smooth down his pants and wipe off a smudge of dirt from his heel.
    â€œSo what is it you want?” I ask him.
    Standing up, he swings his rifle over his shoulder. “Peace and quiet. Space. Time to play my guitar. Read. Think.”
    I glance at the army bag by his feet. “Exactly what you don’t have now?”
    He smirks. “Not when you’re sharing your tent with a bunch of other guys.” He swings his guitar over his other shoulder and grabs his duff el bag. “I’ve got to walk over to the bus stop. You should go back inside. See who’s winning.”
    He means the basketball game. I’m thinking of Shira, Ben, and me. I realize I’m not interested in the games going on inside the den. I’d rather talk to Noah.
    â€œActually,” I say, “the bus stop is on my way home. I’ll walk with you. I was planning on leaving anyway.”
    â€œWithout your shoes?” He glances at my feet.
    I’m still in my socks. “Right.” I run back in and lace up my shoes in less time than it took him. I dash out only to find that somehow Noah’s mom has made it out before me. She stands on her tiptoes, her arms wrapped around his neck, reaching up to kiss him as he bends to hug her.
    I stop—feeling a lump in my throat as if the air I’m breathing has become infused with a tenderness so potent it’s contagious.
    â€œCall me as soon as you can,” she says.
    â€œYes, Mom.”
    â€œTell your commander I want you home next weekend. We’re having a birthday party for Grandma.”
    He laughs. “Oh sure, he’ll go for that. Anything else?”
    â€œYou need to have more time to rest.” She hands him a bag of cookies. “They just came out of the oven.”
    He takes a deep breath and sighs. “Delicious. The guys are going to love them.” He catches me watching, smiles, shrugs, and blushes.
    â€œAnd I packed you some extra boxers and—”
    â€œMom.”
    â€œOh, all right.” She sighs and turns around, her shoulders drooping inward. “And this is for you, Aggie.” She gives me a paper bag spotted with oil stains. It’s the malawah .
    â€œThank you,” I say, pretending not to notice her tears.
    â€œHow did she know I was leaving?” I ask Noah as she walks back up the stairs into the house. walks back up the stairs into “Nothing gets by her.”
    We wave good-bye and start walking down the alley. The familiar refrains of the news broadcasts chime the hour from almost every house. Later the streets will fill with restaurant-goers, bar hoppers, and kids crowding the sidewalks mingling with friends.
    For now the alleyways are empty except for me and Noah and patches of snow. We walk side-by-side, listening to the sound of our footsteps on the cobblestones. As we turn the corner, he waits for me to walk in front of him down a narrow passage where we must squeeze past a row of cars crowding up the sidewalk.
    â€œThis is probably the only place in the world where cars get the sidewalk and people use the road.”
    I giggle, listening to myself and feeling so young and stupid.
    As he draws up again beside me, an awkward silence takes over. I never used to feel tongue-tied around him.
    But there’s something different in the way he’s acting with me. And the way he looks at me. His hint of a dimple in each cheek makes me want to try harder, sound smarter, act older.
    We leave behind the narrow streets and reach the