Two Faced Europe

Chapter 4: the city of 'L Amour (French: love)

Amani heard so much about the Eiffel tower that she wanted to see that one first. She knew that there was a lot to see in Paris. Her bike was being left at the hotel and Amani went on foot to the Eiffel tower. The walk took quite the time. Amani didn't know how much she spend walking, but the tower was coming closer. It looked like it was growing every second. Once she reached the giant building Amani gasped for air. It was even bigger than she imagined. The people were walking underneath the Eiffel tower. Amani let her gaze go over the building and decided to sit somewhere in the sun with a view on the Eiffel tower. She found herself a place and sat on the floor. It was nice and warm that day and she didn't mind sitting on the floor. Amani took her bottle of orange juice out of her bag and drank a little. A lot of people were looking at her. They must think she's a bum or something, she puts that thought a side.

Amani was sitting in the sun for a long time, her bare arms felt really hot. She looked at it and saw it was kind of red. It's a pity she didn't put on some sunscreen. Too bad, there's nothing that she can do now, the only thing she could do, was to sit in the shade. Amani took her stuff with her and went to a tree. She still had the beautiful view, but the chance on a sunburn would decrease now.

A boy passed, looked at her and came back.

"Are you all alone?" He asked her. She smiled back at the boy.

"Yes, I'm on a journey. I want to see the world for my own." Amani saw the puzzled look on his face and patted on the floor beside her. The boy looked at the spot she patted and sat down.

"Why do you wanted to go on a journey alone? You know it can be dangerous for a girl alone, right?"

Amani held in a laugh, he was kind of cute. And he cared more about her in these few seconds, than her father and stepmother all these years. The clenching feeling in her chest came back for a second, but then she pushed it to the background.

"Well" Amani said "People tried to take advantage of me. I was sick of that, so I went off on this journey. I also think that if you travel alone, you get to see the things you want to see. If you go with more people you have to recon with all their needs. Oh yes, and your other question. I do know it can be dangerous but it is worth it, so I don't mind. At the moment I live day by day, if it happens it was meant to be."

He looked at here very closely, she didn't know why. Maybe to see if she's lying, if she was all right. Amani became a little curious about his reasons.

"Oh, I didn't introduce myself." Amani said.

"Me neither" The boy said with joy in his voice.

"I'm Amani." "My name is Damnien." They laughed together and shook hands.

Damnien popped his question. "Why would people take advantage of such a cute girl?"

"Shouldn't you be asking what they exactly did to me?" She replied. "I didn't ask it because I don't know whether you'd answer the question." He was serious about it, who knows what she's been going through. "It could be that it was too bad to talk about, you never know."

"I can tell you, but please don't feel sorry for me. Ok?" Damnien nodded his head. His eyes pointed at her and he had a serious look in his eyes, letting her know though his body language that she could tell him her story. He would be discreet. Amani told him her story. She didn't cry, there were no more tears left. Damnien's eyes filled their self with sorrow. Once she ended her story, he kept quiet for a moment. He didn't know what to do or say.

"I'm sorry." Damnien said. Amani looked at him. She had the idea she made a huge mistake by telling him this. Suddenly a sad smile brake through on his face. Amani didn't know what this meant. At the moment Damnien was a huge riddle sitting beside her. She couldn't move or speak. The only thing she could do was wait. The tension in her body became more and more when he finally opened his mouth to speak.

"I'm sorry." A little pause. "I do feel sorry for you."

Amani sighed in relief. That was it? She thought to herself. She smiled back at him "I forgive you, just for this time. Do you live in Paris Damnien?"

"Yes, I lived here all my life so I'm a bit jealous. You just go on a journey, I would never even think about it. Amani, how old are you?"

"I'm 21 years young."

"I'm a little bit older, guess what age I am."

Amani looked at him. She loved to guess the age of people, even though she was always wrong. Damnien. His name flashed through her mind. He had dark brown hair, slightly longer than she was used to. He had eyes you could drown in. They had a dark green colour. Looking at him made butterflies fly through her stomach. He just sat there, letting her watch him. He had thick lips, kissable lips. The feeling in her stomach became even worse. Suddenly she wants to touch him. Swipe her fingers over his lips, just to see if they are as smooth as she thinks they would be. She shook her head. What was she thinking? She is supposed to guess his age, not to think about those gorgeous lips. Amani looked at his eyes again. He seems really mature. It's visible in his eyes. The rest of his face looks so young. No wrinkles, nothing. His green eyes and her brown eyes meet. She wasn't able to look away, neither was he. They stared in each other's eyes. He blinked his eyes, the moment got lost in time. She pulled herself together.

"I guess your about 25 years old."

"Almost correct, I'm 23."

They talked about their hobby's, family and the things they experienced. Amani felt a connection to Damnien. It was rare to feel a connection with someone that strong. She never felt that way before. It scared her a bit, but he gave her a good feeling as well. Amani didn't know what she should do. On the other hand, the chance is huge, she would never see him again. She had no phone, no computer. There was nothing to stay in contact with him.

When it was getting dark they parted ways. They didn't say just bye, but good bye, a promise for a meeting in a unknown future. Amani went back to her hotel. She would stay for one more night and after that she planned to go to Belgium, have some of their Belgium chocolate and perhaps their fries. She dropped herself on the bed thinking about Damnien. Something stirred inside when she thought of him. Amani hugged herself in the bed and soon fell asleep.