Title: Freefall

Author: badly-knitted

Characters: Dee, Ryo, OC.

Rating: G

Setting: After Like Like Love

Summary: Ryo has arranged a special treat for Dee's Finding Day.

Word Count: 434

Written For: The dw100 prompt 'On the meaning of space travel: "It will free man from the remaining chains, the chains of gravity which still tie him to this planet."'

Disclaimer: I don't own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.

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OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

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Being in freefall was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time; it was like flying, and probably the closest thing to being weightless that Dee would ever experience, but as the air rushed past him he could already sense gravity tugging at him, dragging him down towards the ground, immeasurably far below.

It looked unreal from this height, sort of hazy, like a satellite photograph, or a watercolor painting, a wash of greens and blues and browns with everything blurring together. He couldn't make out much detail, although he was aware that the ground seemed to be rushing up to meet him; a disorienting illusion since he knew in reality the ground was perfectly still while he was the one doing all the moving, falling out of the sky. He forced himself not to close his eyes though, no matter how alarming the situation seemed. He'd wanted to do this, and he intended to enjoy the experience to the fullest extent.

Abruptly a jolt went through his body as the man he was strapped to pulled the ripcord and the parachute unfurled, slowing their downward plunge so that instead of dropping like the proverbial stone, they were drifting towards the ground at a more leisurely and less nerve-racking pace. Splodges of color on the ground gradually began to take on familiar shapes; buildings, trees, rivers and ponds, roads with tiny cars moving along them, looking more like children's toys than the real thing.

As they dropped the last few hundred feet, Dee tried to remember what the instructor had told him about landing, bending his knees to absorb the impact, and not trying to remain on his feet. That would have been impossible anyway because just as they were touching down a gust of wind caught the parachute's canopy, dragging them across the sand before dropping them unceremoniously in a tangled heap. Not the most dignified landing, but it didn't matter; the ground felt reassuringly solid beneath him.

Ryo ran across to help Dee disentangle himself. He'd been the one to arrange this as a Finding Day surprise, giving his lover the chance to do something he'd long wanted to try.

"How was it?" he asked, helping Dee to his feet as the experts gathered in the parachute.

"Whooo!" Dee whooped. "That was incredible!" He hugged Ryo. "Thanks, babe, that's one experience I'm never gonna forget! Not sure I'd want to do it again, jumpin' out of a plane is seriously scary, but it was worth the mind-numbing terror; the view was incredible. All the same, I'm glad to be back on solid ground."

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The End