Disclaimer – I own nothing of the song Free Falling or Reba. Both belong to their respected owners. I do own my original characters of Elizabeth, Damian, Gabriel and any other characters you may not recognize, also the plot. 'Nuff said.

Italics are song lyrics and thoughts.

A/N: I was listening to this song recently and this story idea popped into my head.

Summary: AU: Elizabeth is sixteen-years-old and is a very good girl. She has a loving boyfriend, Gabriel and loves everything and everyone. She runs into her ex-boyfriend Damian and her entire world turns upside down. Set to the song Free Falling by Tom Petty. One-Shot. Rated T because I'm paranoid.

Genre: Romance/Drama

Rating: T

Elizabeth Ann Montgomery was the sweetest sixteen-year-old girl to grace the planet. Everyone loved her and she loved everyone.

If you were to ask Elizabeth who her favorite person in the world was, she would promptly answer – her mother. Elizabeth's father had died in an accident when she was four-months-old.

Together, every Sunday, Elizabeth and her mom would attend St. Mary's Christian Church. Elizabeth loved the church – she was a Youth Group Teen Leader, played on the church's volleyball team and often worked in the nursery, tending to the young children.

Elizabeth loved to travel and had been to 13 of the 50 states. She was planning on going on a road trip with friends over the summer to travel across America. Elizabeth couldn't wait for the summer and the road trip. She had already saved $400 and wanted to save a little more. To pay for the road trip, she did extra things around the house and Cheyenne would pay her for it.

Unlike every other sixteen-year-old girl, Elizabeth loved Elvis Priestly. Her favorite songs of his included, "Hound Dog", "Blue Suede Shoes", "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Can't Help Falling in Love." She also loved horses and had one of her own – a black Quarter Horse mare named Sassy, short for Sarsaparilla. Sassy had a broad blaze that took up most of her face and two back socks.

Elizabeth also loved her boyfriend, Gabriel. She felt he was an angel sent down from heaven to protect her. Gabriel felt the same way about Elizabeth. They had met in their 7th grade science class and have been together ever since.

She's a good girl, loves her mama
Loves Jesus and America too
She's a good girl, crazy 'bout Elvis
Loves horses and her boyfriend too

Elizabeth, her mom and Gabriel all resided in a small town in Texas called Reseda. The town had very long days, but Elizabeth didn't mind – she usually managed to find something to do.

"Mom, I'm gonna ride Sassy, okay?" Elizabeth called into the house one summer afternoon.

"Okay. Have fun and don't forget your helmet and cell phone!" Cheyenne called back. Elizabeth grinned and went down to the stable, watching the cars zoom on the freeway that ran through the backyard.

Elizabeth and her mom lived on twenty acres of land, ten of which was taken up by the freeway. It was on that very freeway that Elizabeth's dad got killed on.

She reached the stable and got Sassy out of her stall. The stable was rather small, consisting of four stalls, two on one side and two on the other. Cheyenne's horse, Tilly, once resided in one of the stalls, but had died recently.

"Hey pretty girl. Hi Master Hunter." Elizabeth greeted the two horses on the stalls on the end. The other stalls in the stable were for the horse's food and the tack room.

Master Hunter belonged to Gabriel and was also Sassy's half brother. He was two hands taller than Sassy and was the color of melted chocolate. He had a large splotch of white between his eyes and two uneven socks on his front feet.

A few minutes later, Sassy was brushed and tacked up under Western tack. Elizabeth led Sassy out of the barn and mounted her, Master Hunter's whinnies filling Elizabeth's ears.

"I'm sure Gabriel will be by to ride you, sweet boy." Elizabeth told the horse as she mounted Sassy and cantered off towards the woods.

Elizabeth slowed Sassy to a walk and shivered – she was suddenly cold, even though it was a hot summer afternoon. She had Sassy stop so she could put on a sweatshirt.

Suddenly, Sassy nickered nervously and sidestepped, throwing Elizabeth off-guard. Elizabeth fell off the elegant mare and watched her gallop off.

Elizabeth moved all her fingers and toes before testing her arms, legs and neck. She sat up and slowly got to her feet – no broken bones.

"Hey! Is this your horse?" an unfamiliar young man's voice called. Elizabeth squinted into the darkness of the woods and saw her ex-boyfriend, Damian, come forward, leading Sassy.

"Yes, this is my horse. You should know!" Elizabeth snapped, taking the reins from him and mounted Sassy. They cantered out of the woods and towards the Montgomery farmhouse.

It's a long day livin' in Reseda
There's a freeway runnin' through the yard
And I'm a bad boy, 'cause I don't even miss her
I'm a bad boy for breakin' her heart

And I'm free, I'm free fallin'
Yeah, I'm free, free fallin'

The following day, Elizabeth and her best friend, Skylar, were walking down Ventura Boulevard when Elizabeth spotted Damian standing in the shadows.

"I'm gonna meet Kate, Stefani, Anna and Matt at the Multiplex. Come when you're ready, okay?" Skylar told Elizabeth. Elizabeth nodded and watched the other girl walk off.

"Why are you stalking me? You and I broke up, remember?" Elizabeth asked Damian as he stepped out of the shadows.

"Come on, Elizabeth. You knew our relationship wasn't over," Damian said, taking a step toward Elizabeth. She backed away and reached into her purse for her cell phone. "What are you gonna do? Call the cops?"

"No, I'm gonna call Gabriel, my BOYFRIEND, whom I love very much." Elizabeth told her ex, narrowing her eyebrows and took calm, soothing breaths. She slowly backed away and went to join her friends at the Multiplex.

"Hey. You okay?" Skylar asked as the six of them got in line to get tickets. Elizabeth nodded and bought her ticket. She then went to the concession stand and bought a small popcorn and soda combo. She also bought chocolate-covered pretzels.

The six of them climbed the stairs to the balcony and found seats towards the middle of the first row of seats.

All the vampires walkin' through the valley
Move west down Ventura Boulevard
And all the bad boys are standing in the shadows
All the good girls are home with broken hearts

And I'm free, I'm free fallin'
Yeah, I'm free fallin'

After the movie ended, Elizabeth and Skylar headed to Elizabeth's house. As she drove, Skylar could sense there was something wrong with her best friend.

"Lizzie, you okay?" Skylar asked, looking over at her friend. She gasped when she saw tears streaming down Elizabeth's cheeks. "What's wrong?"

"I saw Damian outside the movie theater. He wants to get back together with me, but I know that would hurt Gabriel. I'm so confused and upset right now!" Elizabeth choked out between sobs. Skylar handed Elizabeth tissues and put a hand on her best friend's shoulder.

"I HATE Damian for what he did to you. You don't have to get back together with him. Gabriel is such a better match for you." Skylar assured her best friend as they pulled into the Montgomery's driveway.

"Mom, Skylar's spending the night, okay?" Elizabeth called into the house as she and Skylar entered.

"Okay, sweetie. Hope you girls have fun," Cheyenne told the two teenagers, exiting her room, dressed in her nursing scrubs. Cheyenne worked at the local hospital and Elizabeth knew she was on call. "You girls gonna be okay to fend for yourselves?"

"Yes, Mom/Ms. M." Elizabeth and Skylar chorused.

"What about eating something?" Cheyenne asked, grabbing her purse.

"We'll order a pizza or something." Elizabeth told her mother.

"Okay. Have fun girls. You'll probably be asleep when I get home, so I'm gonna say goodnight now." Cheyenne told the girls, giving each of them hugs. She planted a kiss on Elizabeth's temple before exiting the house.

The girls put in a movie and ordered a large cheese pizza from their favorite pizza place. Elizabeth found her secret stash of orange soda and brought up two cans.

"I need to feed the horses. I'll be right back." Elizabeth told Skylar, getting her phone and a flashlight before putting on her jacket and barn boots.

"Okay. Do you want me to come?" Skylar asked.

"No – you stay here in case the pizza comes." Elizabeth told Skylar. Skylar nodded and watched her friend disappear into the darkness.

Elizabeth was back inside twenty minutes later, just as her cell phone went off. She smiled when she saw it was Gabriel. Skylar didn't even look up from the reality show she was watching as Elizabeth took the call in her room.

"Hi! How's my handsome man?" Elizabeth asked, realizing how dumb that sounded.

"I'm good, sugar cake. How are you doing?" Gabriel asked, making Elizabeth swoon at his southern accent.

"I'm good. Skylar's spending the night while mom's working the overnight shift." Elizabeth told her boyfriend since seventh grade.

"May I see you tomorrow? After Skylar goes home, of course." Gabriel said, running a hand through his blond hair.

"Sure," Elizabeth told him, hearing Skylar talk to the pizza delivery person. "Baby, pizza's here. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Sounds good, sweet pea. I love you." Gabriel told Elizabeth.

"Love you, too," Elizabeth told him, sighing as she hung up her phone and walked to where Skylar was sitting crossed-legged on the couch, two slices of cheese pizza on a paper plate. "Hope you saved some for me!"

"I did." Skylar told Elizabeth, her mouth full of pizza. Elizabeth laughed and rolled her eyes, helping herself to a slice of pizza. She closed the lid on the pizza box and went to join her friend on the couch.

The two of them watched three movies before they felt themselves grow tired. While Skylar volunteered to do dishes and put the pizza away while Elizabeth took a shower and set her alarm for 5:00 AM the following morning.

Elizabeth was in her shower when she heard Skylar enter the room.

"IS THE SLEEPING BAG WHERE IT USUALLY IS?" Skylar called.

"YEAH! ARE YOU OKAY SLEEPING ON MY COUCH?" Elizabeth asked, stepping out of the shower and put on her pajamas.

"That's fine." Skylar told Elizabeth, smiling as Elizabeth got her a pillow off her bed.

"Night Skylar. Sleep well." Elizabeth told her best friend as both girls settled down for the night. Elizabeth looked for her stuffed lamb named Baa and got into a comfortable position. She was asleep a few minutes later.

And I'm free, I'm free fallin'
Yeah, I'm free fallin'

It was close to six the following evening when Skylar went home. Cheyenne was working the night shift again, leaving Elizabeth to fend for herself. She heated up some leftover pizza and read her new book for a while before playing a few games on her cell phone until her battery died.

As her phone was charging, she got a text from Gabriel.

Got two tickets to The Thirsty Games for the midnight showing. Wanna go?

Elizabeth squealed and texted him back – does Cattail love Peter more than life itself?

The two of them texted back and forth before Gabriel had to go – he was watching his younger siblings – five-year-old twins named Lucy and Maura.

Free fallin'
I'm free fallin'
Free fallin'
I'm free fallin'

The summer flew by quickly and before Elizabeth knew it, it was time to shop for back-to-school clothes. She hated shopping and avoided it whenever possible. She bought some nice jeans and tops, along with two new pairs of shoes.

When the two of them stopped at the food court for lunch, Elizabeth saw Skylar, Gabriel and some kids from school sitting at a large table towards Pizza Palace. Elizabeth gave her mom a pleading look and Cheyenne gave her the okay to see her friends. Cheyenne watched Elizabeth interact with the kids when a figure caught her eye. She saw it was Elizabeth's ex, Damian.

"Mom, all of us are going to a movie. Can I go, pretty please?" Elizabeth pleaded.

"Did you get your chores done?" Cheyenne inquired.

"No, but-" Elizabeth started to say.

"No buts. You know the rule – chores first, friends second." Cheyenne told Elizabeth. Elizabeth nodded and went to say goodbye to her friends, promising to call them later.

What seemed like a lifetime, Elizabeth's chores were done. She called Gabriel and the two of them went for a ride on their horses on the trail behind the house.

Elizabeth was happy to be with the one she loved more than anything, except her mother.

A month later, school started. Elizabeth was up every day at four so she could get her chores and breakfast taken care of before the bus came to get her at seven. It was a five-mile bus ride to the new high school and Elizabeth had wanted to drive, but had been in a really bad car accident that made her scared to get behind the wheel.

Elizabeth squealed when she saw Skylar, Gabriel and all of her other friends. They received their class schedules and compared them, squealing when all of them had the same classes and lunch. Gabriel laughed and wrapped an arm around Elizabeth's shoulders, drawing her close to him.

Damian was watching this and frowned, knowing that Elizabeth was his, but after seeing how happy she was with Gabriel, he decided to leave them alone.

I wanna glide down over Mulholland
I wanna write her name in the sky
I wanna free fall out into nothin'
Gonna leave this world for a while

A couple months later, Elizabeth was reading the paper for a school assignment when she stumbled upon Damian's name. The article had said he had drowned in a lake and there were signs that he was under the influence. Elizabeth cut out the article and put it in her scrapbook.

High school was over and now, Elizabeth, Skylar, Gabriel and the rest of Elizabeth's friends were off at college. Elizabeth decided to study equine science and become a large animal vet, specializing in horses.

After college, Elizabeth and Gabriel bought a small apartment and moved in together. On their first night at the apartment, Gabriel proposed and Elizabeth, of course, said 'yes'.

They had a lovely wedding and went on a long honeymoon to Montana. They helped on a Mustang round-up and ended up adopting two – a mare and a stallion, which they instantly had gelded, but not before he got the mare pregnant.

"I'm gonna name her Penny, since her coat shines like one." Elizabeth announced as she brushed her new Mustang mare.

"I'm naming him Mask, since it looks like he's wearing one." Gabriel told Elizabeth, also brushing his Mustang gelding.

"Honey, we still haven't decided on a name for our baby." Elizabeth told Gabriel as they let Penny and Mask into their pasture. Master Hunter and Sassy were already in the pasture grazing and nickered happily as the new arrivals entered and grazed beside them.

"If it's a girl, Sara, after my sister. If it's a boy, Rory – I've loved that name since I was a boy." Gabriel told Elizabeth, placing a hand on her stomach. The two of them were going that afternoon to find out what they were having.

They left the horses in the care of Cheyenne and her nurse, Betty. Cheyenne had a stroke Elizabeth's junior year of college and wasn't showing any signs of improving, but refused to give up on anything.

The doctor smiled as she placed the wand to Elizabeth's stomach and moved it over her stomach. Elizabeth smiled up at Gabriel and looked at the screen.

"There's your little girl." The doctor told the couple. Elizabeth felt tears in her eyes as she looked at her daughter.

"She's beautiful!" Elizabeth marveled, touching a hand to the screen.

A month and a half later, Skylar threw Elizabeth a baby shower. There was games and lots of good food. Elizabeth had Gabriel write down everything she received as she opened present after present.

"Honey, I thought of a middle name for our little one." Gabriel told Elizabeth as the two of them got ready for bed.

"What?" Elizabeth asked, poking her head out of the bathroom. She was currently brushing her teeth and was just about done.

"I was thinking we could name her after your momma." Gabriel said, getting on his side of the bed as Elizabeth joined him.

"Sara Cheyenne – I love it!" Elizabeth told her husband, tears streaming down her cheeks. Gabriel kissed her cheek and turned out the lights, ready for a good night's sleep.

Three weeks later, Elizabeth went into labor, Gabriel by her side the whole time.

Twelve and a half hours later, Sara Cheyenne Woodrow entered the world. She weighed in at 8 pounds, 7 ounces and was 17.6 inches long. Elizabeth cried as Sara was placed in her arms.

"She's so beautiful! I can't believe she came out of me!" Elizabeth marveled as Sara was taken to the nursery and Elizabeth was taken to the birthing suite. Gabriel pressed a kiss to Elizabeth's forehead as he went to tell Cheyenne and his family the good news.

Elizabeth was fast asleep when she heard someone enter the room. Opening her eyes, she saw Damian standing before her, dressed in his usual black clothes and cowboy hat.

"I thought you died!" Elizabeth told Damian.

"I faked my own death – I just came to say congratulations and your daughter is beautiful. I can see how happy you are with Gabriel, so I'll leave you two alone for good now." Damian told Elizabeth, gently kissing her cheek before exiting the room, nearly bumping into a nurse who was entering the room with Sara.

Elizabeth held Sara and watched her nurse. She didn't hear Gabriel or her mother come in until she felt someone sit in the chair next to the bed. She looked up and saw Cheyenne sitting there, with the help of her nurse Betty.

"Momma, this is your granddaughter, Sara. Would you like to hold her?" Elizabeth asked. Cheyenne weakly nodded and Elizabeth smiled as she watched her mother hold her daughter.

After a while, Cheyenne and Betty left, leaving Elizabeth and Gabriel to bond with their new baby.

Gabriel put the little one to bed after she had nursed. Elizabeth smiled and closed her eyes, feeling herself fall asleep.

And I'm free fallin'
I'm free fallin'