Cockaigne (n.) An imaginary land of luxury and idleness.

Wednesday, September 13, 1989

Paris, France

8:47 am

"Happy birthday to you…Happy birthday too yooouu…Happy Birthday…" Bella sleepily blinked open her eyes to the sound of Jasper's off-key singing.

"Happy Birthday…Happy birthday to yooouuu!"

Bella smiled at his gesture, sitting up in bed and hugging her knees to her chest. "What's with all the noise Jazz?" she asked teasingly. Her voice was still heavy with sleep.

"My favorite girl has a birthday today." He walked towards her, planting a kiss on her forehead. She smelled alcohol on his breath and she knew it was fresh. Why he was drinking so early in the morning? She had no idea.

"What time is it?" she groaned, rubbing her eyes sleepily. She regretted drinking as much as she did the night before, but Jasper had insisted. They had made it back to the hostel fairly late the previous night. Jasper maintained that they had to go out for drinks.

"Like 8:45-ish," he answered with a shrug, getting off of her bed.

"Since when do you wake up so early?" She leaned back against the iron bed head trying to wake herself up.

"Since it's September 13th and you are now a twenty-one year old woman."

"Twenty-one," she mused. "It sounds so old, doesn't it?"

"Hey! I'm twenty-one and I am far from old."

"You know what I mean," she said rolling her eyes. "Time is passing by so quickly. I don't feel any older, though." She threw her legs over the side of the bed, getting up and stretching her tired muscles.

"Time is passing by quickly. It's almost nine and we have things to do. Get ready Bells."

Bella headed into the small bathroom inside their shared room. She washed her face and started the shower.

In the past weeks she and Jasper had many adventures. After they left Hungary she noticed that the old Jasper began to emerge once again. They visited Croatia and Slovenia then they explored the Italian countryside and even made their way to Rome to see the Colosseum. She even managed to lose Jasper for almost the entirety of a day. When he returned, he reverted back to his strange behavior. After they left Italy they made their way to Switzerland before going on to France.

Now, Jasper was leaving. They originally agreed that he would stay until December and then go home in time for Christmas, but shortly after they left Hungary, Jasper informed her that he had changed his mind. She knew it had something to do with his disappearance and his black eye, but he still denied it vehemently.

She was angry with him at first, but then she decided it did not matter. This trip had taught her a great deal about Jasper and one of the things she learned was that he was not a very good friend. He had his outstanding moments, but lately she was seeing another side to him.

After she was showered and dressed reentered the room where Jasper was seated at the edge of his bed.

"So, Eiffel Tower today?"

"Yep," he grinned, looking very excited. "What better day to see it than on your birthday. Plus we haven't really done any touristy things. Today should be the day."

"This year is the 100th anniversary you know." She opened her backpack sifting through all of her train passes, maps and tickets to find her map of Paris. "Well March was the actual anniversary month, but you get the idea."

"Really?" he asked with a raised brow in fascination. "No better time than now to visit then."

Wednesday, September 13, 1989

Paris, France

11:42 am

Bella was barely concentrating on what Jasper was saying once they got to the Eiffel Tower. Jasper said something about questions and elevators before heading to an information booth. There was a man in the crowd that caught Bella's attention.

He seemed oddly familiar.

Bella watched as the man ran a hand through his golden brown hair gesturing animatedly to the red-headed woman next to him. Their attention turned to what she assumed was either a child or a very small person. She couldn't be sure due to the crowd around her. The woman smiled down indulgently at what was likely a child.

Something about the man she was with seemed familiar. It might have been the strange hue of his hair. Maybe he was someone famous. An actor? She craned her neck, hoping he would turn around so she could see his face and know for sure.

Where had she seen him before?

"Okay, I think I got it," Jasper said, as he returned with newfound information. Bella looked away from the couple, her eyes meeting his.

"What?"

"I was thinking we could take the stairs," he said. "Where's the fun in riding an elevator to the top? We should take the stairs. I think it will build character. We definitely need more of that."

Bella laughed as he led her in the opposite direction towards the line for the steps. She looked back as they went trying to find the man, but he seemed to have disappeared.

Jasper made silly jokes on their way up the stairs. He would over exaggerate his breathing and shout random words in different languages, much to the annoyance and amusement of the other climbers. Halfway up the steps, Bella began to feel very light-headed. "Oh my God Jasper," she wheezed. "Do you have any water. My head is spinning."

Jasper turned back towards her hunched over form. She placed her palms on her thighs, trying to will her head to stop spinning.

"Are you afraid of heights Bells?"

"I don't think so. I was fine when I visited the Empire State Building with my family."

"It's probably just vertigo."

"Yeah I think it is." Bella started climbing again. "Come on, we're almost to the first level. I'll stop there and sit down for a while."

Bella ended up opting out of climbing the rest of the tower, letting Jasper go on without her. She didn't think she could handle going all the way to the top of the tower. He spent the entire walk back down, gushing about what she missed and the pictures he took.

They found a café new the Eiffel Tower and sat down for lunch. "I feel so French," Jasper chuckled as he took a sip of his coffee. She noticed he didn't touch his food. He didn't seem to have much of an appetite lately. "Look at us sitting outside and drinking coffee. French idleness at its best."

"You probably sound like a typical boisterous American to them." His voice was obnoxiously loud in comparison to the other patrons.

Jasper shrugged unworriedly. "So, I have to talk to you about something." His tone had suddenly gone serious causing Bella's stomach to roll in apprehension. She was afraid of what he might say next. Was it related to his black eye and strange behavior?

She hoped he was finally going to open up to her.

"What is it?" She tried to keep her voice even.

He took a deep breath, shaking his leg agitatedly. "I feel bad that I'm not going to go grape picking in southern France with you."

Bella sat up straighter placing down her cup of chocolat chaud. "What do you mean?"

He sighed, running a hand through his blond hair. "Look, Bells I know I said can't stay for a whole year, but I feel bad. You can't go around by yourself. Plus I'm leaving right after you leave for Burgundy. Maybe I should wait for December."

She looked at her friend thoughtfully, thinking about what she was about to say. "I can't say I'm surprised you feel that way." They had spoken at length about his eventual departure. Although they had told her parents they were traveling abroad for a year, what they had really meant was Bella. Staying a year was never a part of Jasper's original plan.

"Why?"

"It was nice that you came with me Jasper, but I think I'm at a point where I can continue on my own. The whole point of this trip was self-discovery and, to be honest, I think I'm ready for the next step. I can take care of myself."

She was done. She couldn't care less if he stayed or left. His presence no longer mattered. In fact, she wanted him to go home.

"I'm sorry Bells." He looked at her incredulously. She knew that he wasn't as passionate about the trip as she was and that he basically only came for her benefit. It would have been tougher to convince her parents if it had been just her.

Bella had always been told that she was very free-spirited and never afraid to tackle a challenge. Backpacking was something she had desperately wanted to do for a long time and she would continue whether Jasper was there or not.

She reached for his hand across the table. "Don't be. I'll be fine. I am fine"

"I feel bad for wanting to leave. Your parents will be pissed."

"You were never staying for the whole trip anyway," she said squeezing his hand. "What's the difference between leaving now and leaving in December? Besides they don't need to know."

"Have you met my mother?" They both burst out into loud laughter.

September 18, 1989

Paris, France

12:48 pm

*whistle*

Bella looked up from her lunch to see a middle aged man winking at her. He blew her a kiss and started yelling out declarations of love to her. She simply shook her head and went back to eating her sandwich. She wandered into a park, intending on having a small picnic, but she seemed to have gained an audience.

"Ma belle chérie," he said approaching her. He boldly sat down on the bench next to her. Bella did her best not to cringe. She didn't want him to sense fear.

"Hello," she said with a tight smile, sliding away as subtly as she could.

"Voulez-vous aller à l'hôtel avec moi?" he asked, flashing a flirtatious grin.

"Uh no," she said, reaching for her purse and standing up. She intended to find another bench and leave her current one to her brazen new friend.

Bella strode away from the whistling man, bread in hand, enjoying her afternoon despite his unwanted advances. It had been two days since Jasper left. She went with him to the train station and gave him many goodbye hugs. Although she tried to put on her bravest face, she would miss the company of her best friend. His strange behavior and all.

Bella settled in the grass after a while. It was far away enough from everybody else, so she figured it was safe enough. She was glad she didn't bring her large backpack as it was a pain to maneuver. She put on her Walkman, blasting her favorite song and ended up lying on her back, staring at the sky with her satchel as her pillow. Before she knew it, she was falling asleep.

Suddenly, Bella's head hit against the grassy ground with a hard thump. Her eyes shot open to discover a man with his hand wrapped around the strap of her bag, tugging ferociously. She let out a gasp struggling to stand up. At this point, the man already began to dash across the park, away from Bella.

"Hey," she bellowed, pulling off the music player. "My bag." Not knowing what else to do, she sprinted across the park after him. Bella was determined to get her bag back. "Stop," she yelled as he maneuvered his way into a crowd of people. She scampered after him, but soon lost sight of him in the large crowd.

She looked around desperately, spotting a police officer across the street. A large chunk of her important belongings was in that bag. She sprinted towards him. "S'il vous plaît officier. Un homme a volé mon sac."

"American?" he asked.

"Oui."

"Okay," he said, looking around. "Where did he go?"

"He ran through the crowd, but he's probably long gone by now."

"What did he look like?"

Bella described what little she could remember about the bag thief. She ended up going to the station and making a report about her stolen bag. The bag contained more than half of her money and this was sure to set her back on her travels. With all that money gone, she would be unable to visit the majority of the places that are still on her list. She would have to find work and fast. She planned to take a train out of Paris as soon as she could. Bordeaux would be her next stop and she decided to see where that would take her.

September 20, 1989

Chamadelle, France

5:32 pm

Bella walked slowly along the road of the small township of Chamadelle. She had just arrived from Paris after taking a train and hitching a ride with a family. She did not anticipate coming to this particular town, but it was nearest place she could walk to. Now she had to find a place to stay with her limited funds.

She called her parents and although she couldn't reach them at first, she was hesitant to tell them about what happened when they finally answered. She was in no mood to hear 'I told you so.' She decided to be bold and asked about Jasper's arrival, but neither of her parents had seen him yet or knew he was returning. This worried her slightly, but she assumed it was because the Hales lived further away and the only reason they saw Jasper everyday was because of his friendship with her.

Her father did not hide his irritation and worry that she was now wandering around Europe alone. Her mother seemed relieved.

As she walked, she admired the beautiful countryside. It reminded her of a painting or some imaginary place she read about in a book. It was like an old fairytale.

A dark luxurious car, scarcely seen in the countryside, passed her. She imagined what kind of person would be inside. It was probably someone rich and fabulous like a businessman or an actor, on their way to vacation in the wine country.

She approached a small market, intending to buy something fresh to eat in case she had to sleep under the stars. The area seemed relatively safe and she was sure she would be fine sleeping outdoors for a night. She looked up at the sky, hoping it wouldn't rain.

After making her purchases she asked the shopkeeper about the closest inns in the area. Hopefully they were at reasonable prices or else it will be a field for her. She noticed an older woman behind her looking inquisitively at them.

"Vous cherchez un endroit pour rester?" she asked.

When Bella confirmed that she was, the little woman clapped excitedly. She told Bella that she has an extra room and she could stay with her. Bella felt hesitant about going home with the strange woman, nonetheless this alternative would save her lots of money and would keep her dry. She said a silent prayer that this would not turn out to be a disaster. The woman could be an axe murderer for all she knew.

The woman lived a short walk away from the market. Bella helped her carry her groceries. On the way to her home, she introduced herself as Aurore Beaulieu. She was a tiny thing and was very agile for her seventy-five years. She reminded Bella of her grandmother.

"What will you do?" she asked later that evening when Bella recounted her experience in Paris. Bella was surprised at how much she was able to articulate her experience to the woman. Her French was definitely improving.

"Whatever I can."

Aurore had offered her a two-week position to help on her farm and to prepare for the markets. Bella also told her about her plans to pick fruits after. "It will probably only be for about three weeks, because it's a bit late, but it is easy money so that I can travel more."

"Your family, do they know? They must be worried."

Bella shook her head feeling slightly ashamed. She must have seemed like an irresponsible child to the woman. "I couldn't tell them. It would only make them worry unnecessarily."

"Je n'en reviens pas!" she cried out it disbelief. I don't believe it! She told Bella she was very brave and she could never have as much courage as her. Aurore had only left the area a handful of times in her seventy-five years and had never left France.

"I know of a family," she said, pensively. "The Carons. It is maybe an hour drive away. Guillaume, my farmhand, can take you. They deal with wine so they will have picking work. It won't be for very long and probably not much payment wise, but it's something an you'll have a place to stay."

"Really?" she asked happily. "That's great!"

She regarded Bella contemplatively. "They are also looking for a nanny or an Au Pair. Is that something that would interest you?"

"Je ne sais pas," Bella said unsurely. "I have some babysitting experience, but I don't know if it's for me. I want to see more of Europe. I don't know how I would do that while looking after a child. Where is the adventure in that?"

"D'accord, d'accord," Aurore said pleasingly. "Come. I'll show you to your room."

Aurore proved to be an excellent teacher. In the short two weeks that Bella was with her, she learned so much about gardening, animal care, and cooking. Aurore eagerly taught her how to make goat's cheese and bread and she also shared many local dishes.

During the day, Bella would pick fruits and vegetables and tend to the goats and hens. The farm was small and it was just Aurore and her farmhand Guillaume, so Bella's help made the workload lighter.

Review please! Let me know what you think!

I have most of the chapters after this one completely written. There are lots of surprises and fun stuff to come.