Fumble question

[Adam]

Okay, I no-called this in my last hs game of the year, and I've been wondering about it ever since.
A1 has the ball in the FC near the division line, with B1 right up on him with good D. He has used his dribble. B2 is on his way. A1, signficantly taller than B1, attempts to raise the ball over his head. In doing so, he loses control of the ball (without B1's direct help) and it goes into the air at an angle such that he must take a couple of steps to retrieve the ball.
I held my whistle because I felt he had fumbled the ball. My question is, does a fumble need to bounce in order for a player to be able to move his feet to retrieve it?