Resfeber (n.) The restless race of the traveller's heart before the journey begins, when anxiety and anticipation are tangled together; a 'travel fever' that can manifest as an illness

Saturday June 17th 1989

John F. Kennedy International Airport

10:00 am

"Alright Bells, don't forget to call."

"Yes dad."

"And send postcards."

"Yes mom"

"I can't believe you're leaving," Renée said, engulfing her daughter in what was probably the tenth hug since they arrived at the airport. "You're my little girl. Why a year? Why not six months? Or one month?"

Bella remembered the day she decided she wanted to be a backpacker. It was the summer of 1978 and she was in the backseat of her parents' car. They were driving back to her grandparents' house where her brother and twin sisters had stayed behind.

There were two people on the side of the road flagging down the car. After her parent's picked them up, she had learned that they were backpacking and they had been all over Europe. She looked at them with awe, her nine year old mind trying to grasp what that meant. These people were cool and rock star-like. She wanted to be like them. Lugging her backpack across countries and seeing all the places they described in great detail.

"We were just in Paris last week and now we are in the beautiful English countryside. This is the life! I feel free!" His green eyes sparkled with happiness as his hair blew in the wind from the open window. "Woohoo," he yelled slightly sticking his head out the window similarly to how a dog in a car would.

"I'll be back before you know it." Bella removed herself from Renée's grip to embrace her father again. "Bye dad."

"I'll miss you," Charlie said with an unusual amount of emotion in his voice. He wasn't a particularly outwardly affectionate person, but Bella knew he loved his family deeply.

"I'll miss you too Dad," she murmured into his chest.

Jasper moved closer to their huddled group with his arms outstretched. "Bye Mrs. S." Renée looked reluctant, but she embraced him anyway. She still believed he was the reason for her daughter leaving and she had not forgiven him yet.

"Bye Rachel," Bella hugged her younger sister before moving on to her twin. "Bye Angela. I'll miss you guys."

"Bring us back lots of gifts," Angela said with a small giggle. "We'll miss you."

"I will…maybe," Bella teased. "I'll miss you guys too."

"Flight 713 destined to London Heathrow is now boarding."

"That's us," Bella said looking up at Jasper.

"This is it Bells," he said with a wide grin. "We're going out into the world to become adults."

"Don't do anything too crazy," Renée said cupping her cheek. "Be careful Bella and don't let that bozo lead you astray." Renée looked warily at Jasper, who was fighting with the straps on his backpack. She probably would have been slightly more at ease had it been just Bella traveling.

Bella chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Believe me Mom, I won't."

"I love you." She moved a lock of hair out of Bella's face.

"Love you too Mom. Bye guys!"

"Bye!"

Bella turned and walked to the counter handing her boarding pass to the gate attendant. She waved one last time before heading to the plane. Renée and Charlie stood with arms wrapped around each other looking at their daughter as she started her adventure.

.

June 17th 1989

Somewhere over the Atlantic

Time TBA

"I can't believe we're actually going to London. You're so lucky you've been there before," Jasper gushed. "What time is it?"

Bella looked up from her book and turned lazily toward him. "I swear, you asked me this five minutes ago."

Jasper stared at her expectantly.

She popped open her pocket watch with a groan. "It's 4:07 pm back home," she said slowly and deliberately. "So that's 7:07 pm in London."

"This is taking forever," he groaned, rubbing his palms against his thighs. "My palms are sweating.

Bella rolled her eyes and returned to her travel book. She wanted to be as prepared as she could possibly be. It helped with the nervousness she felt. A thought suddenly occurred to her. "Who are you meeting in London, by the way?" Jasper had casually dropped the bomb on her two days before. He would apparently be meeting with some friends and would be gone for the first week of their trip. Bella would spend the week working with Ms. Acker doing a little exploring. She did not, however, want to do too much without her friend.

"Just some friends," he replied nonchalantly with a wave of his hand. He avoided looking her in the eye and seemed to suddenly find the seat in front of him very interesting. "Don't worry about it."

"Why would I be worried?" she asked sarcastically. "It's not like my best friend is running off for a week to meet up with a mysterious group of, European I presume, friends. What is going on? How do you have friends there? Are they from when you were in college back home?"

"I…knew them before," he sighed scratching an imaginary itch. "It's nothing to worry about. We're just catching up. I don't want to take you there because some of them are a little…I don't know. It's fine though. Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it."

.

June 17th 1989

London Heathrow

11:40 pm

"Jasper, my passport," Bella gasped rummaging through her purse. "I must have dropped it somewhere. Maybe on the plane?"

"We could go back and look for it," he suggested leading her back inside the airport. Neither knew exactly where they are going or how to get back to the airplane. When they finally found someone to ask they were led back to the airplane and Bella's passport was nowhere to be found.

"Oh my god," Bella groaned. "What am I going to do?" She was starting to believe her parents were right about her being too irresponsible to travel on her own.

"A temporary one can be issued to you Miss," an attendant told them. He went on to explain the process to her and how she could go about getting new documents.

When they finally got outside the terminal, Bella and Jasper met by a tall, lanky blonde man holding a paper with Bella's name. The man introduced himself as Ms. Acker's brother. "Pleased to meet you," he said, taking Bella's hand in his spidery grasp. "Will you be joining us?" he asked, eyeing Jasper suspiciously.

"Oh, me?" Jasper asked, pointing to himself as if he was expecting Mr. Acker to be speaking to someone else. "Nah dude. I'm actually meeting up with some friends, but I'll stop by the inn in about a week. Tell Ms. Acker I'll see her then."

"You know Elisabeth?" He sounded extremely surprised.

"How do you think she found out about Bells here?" He winked and nudged Mr. Acker lightly with his elbow. The older man seemed very discomforted by the exchange. He forced a polite smile and turned back to Bella.

"Will that be all Miss Swan?"

"Bye Jazz," she said reaching up to hug him goodbye. "Don't get into any trouble."

"I'll try not to. It's only a few days," he said, cupping her cheek. "I'll be back before you know it. I'll call you."

The car ride to the Acker's Inn started out as a quiet one. Bella looked out at the bustling London night with awe. She had been out of the states many times before when she was younger and the family went on vacations, but this was completely different. She was alone and free and she had many new discoveries to make. She couldn't wait to see where this trip brought her.

She looked on in amazement at Big Ben in the distance.

"Where in America are you from?" Mr. Acker asked breaking the silence.

"I'm from New York City."

"The city that never sleeps," he chuckled.

"Have you been?"

"No," he said simply. The slipped back into a comfortable silence.

"What brings you to London?"

"I just wanted to get out," she said suddenly feeling very embarrassed. She was self-conscious of how he would view her decision. It felt silly now that she had to explain it out loud. "See the world, you know? I hear it's better to do when you're young."

"I can imagine," he mused. "Why England?"

"It's just the first leg of my journey," she answered. "In time, I will probably make it as far as Ukraine or Norway. Who knows? I'll see how it goes. Plus this place has sentimental value. We used to visit my grandparents every Christmas and some summers as well."

"Your grandparents were English?"

"Yes, on my mother's side," she answered. "They passed a few years back. Our visits were less frequent by then."

"Sorry to hear that."

"I always liked it here though."

Mr. Acker simply hummed and that was the he said nothing more for the rest of the ride.

They pulled into a quaint dimly lit driveway not long after. Bella sat up in anticipation. She always got a bit anxious when meeting new people. "Here we are," Mr. Acker said. "Elisabeth is probably waiting anxiously by the door."

Mr. Acker opened his door and got out, getting Bella's for her. She grabbed her backpack on the seat next to her and slipped out of the car as he retrieved her duffle from the trunk.

"Welcome to the Acker's Inn." She followed him up to the door. There was a stonewashed hand-painted sign over the door that read Acker's Inn.

They stepped into what appeared to be the front desk area of the small but elegant Inn. He dropped her duffle near the door and made his way behind the counter, rummaging around until he found something. As he came back towards her Bella realized it was a key. "This is the key to your room." He pointed to the staircase.

"Thank you," she murmured, pocketing the key.

"Elisabeth and I live in the house at the back." With that, he turned and headed down the hallway. She scurried after him, leaving her duffle for when she returned. They made their way out the back door and headed to a small house down a short road.

The door flung open and Bella saw a silhouette of a small woman in the doorway. "Back already?" she called.

"Yes, the ride was a bit shorter than I remembered," Mr. Acker answered as they approached. He walked around her and into the house.

"Well, come on dear," Mr. Acker said beckoning Bella inside. "Let me have a look at you." She stepped back, observing Bella. Mrs. Acker, a diminutive woman with kind eyes had her graying hair pulled back into a loose bun. Her hair may have once been a shade of brown similar to Bella's mahogany locks.

"She's just a little thing Richard." Her gray eyes sparkled with maternal care. "I thought she would be older. How old are you dear?"

"Twenty, I…uh make twenty-one in September."

"And she came so far out," she tsked packing her hands on her hips. "She's alone you know."

"She's not alone," Mr. Acker, who she now knew was Richard, called. "There's a boy with her. A strange lad, that one."

Bella fought the urge to roll her eyes. "It was Jasper. He'll be here next week."

"Oh Jasper," she said with realization. "He's the one you're traveling with." She placed an arm around Bella's shoulder steering her to another room. "Where will you be going?"

"We want to head east. I think Amsterdam is next and then Germany. But we plan to head to Hungary. Jasper knows some people there," she said. "When he gets back we'll take the train."

"That sounds nice," she sighed. "I wish I was more adventurous in my youth."

Mr. Acker was sitting in their small living room watching television. He barely glanced up when they entered. "You're going to stay in a room in the Inn. While you're here I will mainly need help with cleaning and bookkeeping. I'm sure you are able to handle that."

"Of course," Bella said sincerely. "I'm so thankful that you are letting me stay here."

"It's no problem dear." She patted Bella's arm. "I'll go fetch your supper. Sit down and watch some Telly."

After Bella finished eating Mrs. Acker walked her back to the Inn where she retrieved her bag and headed to her room. The room was small but cozy and Bella liked it immediately. Mrs. Acker informed her that she needed to be up early if she wanted breakfast.

.

June 29th 1989

Acker's Inn

11:48 am

A week had passed and Bella had seen no sign of Jasper nor had she heard from him. She spent the entirety of the time working with the Acker's. This was not how she had planned to spend her trip, but she had plenty of time to see things. She hoped Jasper would hurry back so they could explore London together.

"Isabella," Mr. Acker called. "Elisabeth says lunch will be ready soon."

Bella looked up from her work. She had been rewriting some of the Acker's old records. Most of their records were outdated or not kept well. She was hoping to get everything properly organized before she left.

"I'll be right there," She yelled. She closed the book she was working on and got up, stretching her sore muscles.

The bell on the door rang, indicating someone had come in, just as she was about to leave.

A tall bronze-haired man in a suit was standing in the doorway across the room. He held a briefcase and a small bag and he looked a bit confused.

"Is this the Acker's place?" he asked with a slight accent that sounded almost French to Bella.

"Yes it is," she answered. "You have the right place."

"Good," he said with a polite smile. He walked towards her until he was standing across from her at the counter. "I would like to check in?"

Bella couldn't help but notice that his eyes were a beautiful shade of green and when he spoke his mouth moved in a very interesting way. It was oddly sexual. His voice was also very smooth and it made her stomach flutter.

Maybe he's a singer, she thought. He sounds like he would have a nice soulful voice. Maybe a bit like –"

"Are you alright?"

Bella snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh what? Check in? Yeah."

He chuckled. The sound made her dizzy. " I called a few days ago. My name is Edward Caron."

"Uh…" she hastily sifted through some papers on the desk in front of her looking for her notepad. "Oh yes," she said finding his name scribbled in a corner on a page. She really needed to get things organized. "Mr. Caron. Two nights?"

"Yes."

"Great," she giggled and let out an embarrassing snort. Bella wanted to disappear.

"Ok," he smiled. "If we could just…" He gestured to the counter.

They went through the check in process, he paid and she gave him his key. "It's on the second floor at the end of the hallway."

"Thank you Miss…"

"It's Swan," she said quickly. "Isabella Swan."

"Miss Isabella Swan," he repeated with a smile that made her heart skip a beat.

"Yep," Bella said with a nervous laugh. "That's me."

After he left Bella felt like slapping herself. That's me? "What is wrong with me?" she groaned throwing up her arms in defeat.

"I haven't the slightest idea."

Bella jumped about a foot in the air, turning around to find Mr. Acker in the doorway staring at her with an amused smile. "You scared me."

"So I see," he said dryly. "I came to see what was keeping you."

"A guest came," she explained pointing to the door. "I had to check him in."

"Oh okay," he said. "Well, come on then." She followed him out the door and to the Acker house.

"Do you or Mr. Acker have any kids?" Bella asked, a few minutes into lunch. They had been talking about her parents and her being abroad.

Mrs. Acker's head quickly snapped up and she had a look in her eye that almost seemed like fear. There was also grief there as well. "No," she said softly averting her eyes. "I don't have any children and neither does Richard. It's just us. It's been that way for quite some time. Richard moved back to the family home to help with the Inn some years ago."

Bella decided not to pursue that line of questioning further. The question seemed to have made Elisabeth Acker very uncomfortable, though her brother seemed unbothered. She simply nodded and went back to her food.

"I want to go out and see more of London tomorrow," Bella said changing the subject. "I was supposed to wait for Jasper…but I don't know. He hasn't called." When she spoke to her mother on the phone the day before she had asked about Jasper. Bella realized then that he should have been back. It was strange that he seemingly vanished without as much as a phone call. She debated telling her mother, but decided against it in fear of worrying their parents unnecessarily.

"That sounds splendid," Mrs. Acker said cheerfully.

"There won't be much to do here tomorrow anyway," Richard Acker said. "It should be a slow day. You should go out and explore. Forget the silly boy."

The Acker's went on to explain to her how to get around and what sites were worth seeing. They had a lot to say about London and the surrounding areas. It was nice to have the advice of people who really knew the city.

She couldn't help the uneasy feeling that would not leave her stomach. Bella had a bad feeling about Jasper.

Review and let me know what you think! I love reading reviews and I will provide reviewers with previews of the next chapter and Chapter 3 will come a lot quicker as well.

And yes, that was the Edward.

P.S. I added a prologue! I figured it would help people get a better understanding of where this is going. Sorry if this is confusing.