The next day Nick's balloon arrived from the states. He and Henri filled both balloons with air and Nick showed Henri how to work the controls. They took a whole day to fill but by dusk the balloons were ready to fly. Abella and I watched as the clouds grew in the distance. We told the men to wait until the storm passed but Henri was anxious to fly. Reluctantly the four of us headed up into the heavens for a "quick" ride.
The men should have heeded our warning. Within moments a storm was upon us. It carried us high in the sky and Henri had problems keeping his balloon under control. I felt sorry for Abella... I could see she was turning blue from all the tossing around. I myself felt quite queasy too. But there was no time to be sick. We had to think fast. Nick yelled to Henri to throw us a line and we did the same. Soon both balloons were tied together so we wouldn't drift apart.
"We need to get above the clouds," yelled Nick to Henri. "We'll find a cloud to hide us, keep the moon beside us, until this storm has passed." Henri agreed and the two men added more hot air to the balloons to make them rise. It had started to rain and my camera was getting wet. I managed to grab a few photos of the lavender fields below before we disappeared into the clouds. I put the camera in its case and helped Nick with the balloon.
Above the clouds we were safe from the storm. As darkness grew we could hear the rain below us. We were lucky there was no thunder or else we would have to go higher and we weren't prepared for a high flight. The moons rays helped to light our way. The storm clouds were breaking up and patches of lavender shown through. Every now and then I could see hints of yellow in the fields and I knew those were sunflowers.
Henri did as Nick instructed and threw his rope end back to us. He was ready to fly solo. He learned fast and Abella even looked like she was ready for anything. Soon Nick had the coordinates to the farm and we were heading back. I was tired from all the excitement. This was the first time that I had not felt safe in the balloon and I was anxious to be on solid ground again.
We landed a few feet from where we had taken off. Abella and I were glad to be home. I almost felt like kissing the ground... We all laughed now that we were safe. We had survived a storm and were ready to give the balloons another try the next day.
Henri had a new excitement in his eyes. He couldn't stop talking to Abella. He took her hand... "Adventure is waiting, new places to explore are waiting, and Love is waiting there, in my beautiful balloon" he told her. Her eyes rolled. She had enough of adventure for one night. "You wait and see... I will take you up again. Way up in the air, in my beautiful balloon," he shouted as she climbed the porch steps and closed the front door behind her. I gave Henri a hug good night and followed Abella into the house. The two men were left to put away the equipment.
We made many more trips to the sky whilst we visited France. Nick and Henri secured a booth at the village fair and took tourists up on trips over the lavender fields. Abella and I were put to work taking care of the appointments and securing the deposits. It was a profitable venture.
A few months later we were hugging Abella and Henri at the airport ready for our trip home. They both promised to come to our wedding and with a hug we were on our way back home to the states.
The next few months were a whirl of plans for the wedding. Nick and Abbe helped formalize all the plans. Nick managed to find a minister to marry us in the balloon. With the plans finished all that was left was for the big day to get here. Abella and Henri kept their promise and we picked them up a few days before the wedding at the airport.
The big day arrived and Abbe kept me from getting butterflies. She had a way of calming me down and making me feel as though everything was going to be alright. Everything WAS alright. I was marrying the man of my dreams and the three of us got along great. He would move into our house and Abbe would live with us until she was ready to go to college. A dorm room would be her place to stay during the semester but the house, with Nick and I in it, would always be home.
Now I stand reminiscing about our life thus far. It has been a grand year of adventure and romance. I am ready to marry Nick. I see him waiting by the balloon as I walk down the aisle. He helps me into the gondola and the ceremony begins. I will always remember his vow to me...
"If you hold my hand, we'll chase our dreams across the sky. And we will have adventures to fill a lifetime. For we can fly," he said. And I smiled at him and replied "Up up and awaaaaay!" And with that the minister pronounced us husband and wife, we kissed, and the balloon lifted off the ground. As we waved goodbye to our friends, ready for a new adventure, I could hear them singing in the distance...
UP UP AND AWAY...
UP UP AND AWAY...
UP UP AND AWAY...
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