Fan Fiction |
by Naomi
“What’s up, Mei Zuo?” asked Jing. Shan Cai and Xiao You exchanged curious glances.
“Oh, sure!” Jing cried excitedly into the phone, “Okay, we’ll get changed and come over right now.” She climbed out of the hot spring and wrapped herself in a towel. She took another one from the rack and held it out, explaining quickly, “Xiao You, grab this. We’ll get changed into some swimmers and meet the guys at the pool.”
“Umm, what about me?” asked Shan Cai, confused.
“Just stay here,” replied Jing with an assuring smile, “You can join us later.” Before Shan Cai could protest, she quickly dragged Xiao You away, disappearing behind a row of fountains.
“Shan Cai.”
She almost froze in the heat of the hot spring when she saw Dao Ming Si standing on the pavement in a pair of white boardshorts, grinning from ear to ear. Panicking like crazy, Shan Cai quickly crossed her arms over her chest, clutching her shoulders with her hands. She shifted behind a large rock in the middle of the hot spring and immersed herself as deep as she could into the shallow water. Leaving her head still visible while she was trembling behind the rock, Shan Cai screamed her lungs out at him.
“DAO MING SI, YOU PIGHEAD! YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO COME OVER TO THIS SIDE! WHY CAN’T YOU HAVE MORE SENSE LIKE EVERYONE ELSE?! YOU’RE LUCKY THAT JING AND XIAO YOU ARE GONE OR I’D GRILL YOU TONIGHT! I’M FULLY NAKED HERE AND YOU’RE JUST STANDING THERE WATCHING ME LIKE IT’S THE MOST NORMAL THING IN THE WORLD!” Little did she know that her face was like a gigantic tomato, creating all the more an adorable scene for her beloved intruder.
“Stupid woman, just calm down! I didn’t see anything before and I can’t see anything now since you’re hiding behind that stupid rock! Besides, I’m a man with size!” Dao Ming Si could barely keep his cheeky smile away.
“It’s SENSE! And what are you doing here anyway?!” Shan Cai fumed, “And where’s everyone else?!”
Dao Ming Si shrugged. “They said Jing and Xiao You were meeting them at the pool. Then they told me to find you.”
“Well, I’m not THAT hard to find!” Remembering the phone call, she mumbled beneath her breath, “Must be another one of Mei Zuo’s ridiculous plans.”
“Yeah, it is,” he confirmed with a grin. Ignoring her exasperated expression, he entered one foot into the water, only to be deafened by a hysterical Shan Cai.
“STOP! DON’T YOU DARE MOVE ANOTHER INCH, YOU PERVERT!”
“I’m cold,” Dao Ming Si replied simply. Of course, he was not planning to pull any tricks on her. Nor was he so desperate as to take advantage of such a vulnerable situation he had put her in. But she looked so cute and innocent as she clutched her shoulders tightly, her small face staring at him in utter horror, uncertain of what was to come. He decided to torment her a little further and entered his other foot into the water. Shan Cai gasped and her already large eyes grew even larger with the rapid pounding of her heart. Dao Ming Si waded across the shallow water and stopped in front of the rock, where he was less than a metre’s distance from his too-achievable goal. With the rock still between them, Dao Ming Si smiled endearingly at her and leant forward. At that moment, Shan Cai squeezed her eyes shut, cursing herself for being mortified by her own boyfriend, yet partly forfeiting to such a tantalising experience. Suddenly, she felt a warm, gentle kiss brush against her lips, but nothing more.
After what seemed like an eternity, Shan Cai finally opened her eyes and saw Dao Ming Si standing on the pavement again, grinning from ear to ear and holding a towel ready for her. Only then did she relax and smile again, allowing herself to secretly scrutinise his deliciously hot, tanned body.
“Well, are you going to come out?” Dao Ming Si teased, “You’ve been staring at me for a long time. I know I’m sexy, but if you want to keep staring, we should go indoors first before I freeze.”
“Yes, I’m coming out!” replied Shan Cai. Blushing furiously, she commanded him, “Turn around, you pighead! And stay in that position! Or the consequences will be worse than they already are! TURN AROUND!”
Dao Ming Si tossed the towel to her and turned around with a smirk across his face. “Consequences? Who cares?! That look on your face when I kissed you - it was just priceless!”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Hua Ze Lei was lounging on a deck chair by the side of the indoor pool, laughing and cheering. He watched a shrieking Xiao You being carried up to the tallest diving board and launched into the water by Xi Men and Mei Zuo. Hua Ze Lei smiled at his friends, knowing that Xi Men had just settled matters with Xiao You. They agreed to be friends. Good friends. At least for now, Hua Ze Lei thought.
“Lei.”
His heart skipped a beat. It was Jing’s voice, and moments later, she appeared in a yellow bikini and sat on a deck chair beside him. “Xiao You looks very attractive in a bikini,” she commented, but her eyes were fixed on him. “I think sky blue suits her well.”
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked, lifting an eyebrow. “You’re the fashion queen, not me.”
“I’m just trying to read you,” she replied, a smile playing on her lips, “So I would know what you’re thinking about.”
“Do you really want to know?”
“Of course. I want to see if I can still find myself in your heart.”
Hua Ze Lei looked away, wishing that her words came with a voice that contained at least some emotion. But it was so calm. Jing smiled briefly, stood up and headed towards the pool to join Xiao You. “Lei, stop being so serious. Are you going to swim?”
“Maybe later.”
Dao Ming Si and Shan Cai arrived at the pool and Shan Cai went to change into her swimmers. Dao Ming Si waved to Hua Ze Lei then went to join the others in the pool. A few minutes later, Shan Cai walked out from the changing room and met Hua Ze Lei’s eyes. He smiled and gave her a ‘thumbs up’ but she blushed and quickly retreated, disappearing into the changing room again.
“Xiao You!” Hua Ze Lei called, jumping into the pool as well, “Shan Cai’s too shy to come out!”
Xiao You grinned excitedly and climbed out of the pool, rushing into the changing room. “Shan Cai!” she screamed, “Oh my goodness!”
“Xiao You, don’t look at me like that! I asked you to bring a pair of swimmers for me! What made you think I’d want to wear a baby pink bikini?!”
“So you can match my blue one,” Xiao You replied happily, “You look absolutely, stunningly, irresistibly gorgeous, Shan Cai! It fits you perfectly and it looks so cute and sexy too! The guys would be drooling all over you!”
“Did you bring anything else?” asked Shan Cai worriedly, “Like a one-piece or even just a pair of boardshorts? I can wear a shirt and -”
“NO WAY! Shan Cai, you are coming out with me RIGHT NOW!” Xiao You grabbed her hand and quickly pulled her out of the changing room. Giggling to herself, Xiao You pushed Shan Cai towards the pool and announced in a talk show voice, “Here I present the very sexy girl you’ve all been waiting for: Shan Cai!”
Five faces whipped around and stared at them like they were under a spotlight, followed by Mei Zuo’s piercing whistle. Hua Ze Lei grinned, Xi Men gasped, Jing did a double take and Dao Ming Si’s mouth dropped open. There stood Shan Cai at the edge of the pool, smiling shyly at her beloved friends and boyfriend, her messy half wet hair flowing down her back and over her shoulders. The light pink shade of the bikini enhanced the stunning radiance of her flawless white skin. Its lack of fabric revealed the beautiful curves of her body which had always been hidden and disguised by her modest, loose-fit clothing. Maybe Shan Cai was a princess in disguise.
Dao Ming Si climbed out of the pool and sprinted towards her, looking her up and down again and again. “Shan Cai, you surprised me again,” he whispered, moving a few strands of hair off her face and tucking them behind her ears. With a silly smile, he bent down and gave a quick kiss to her rosy cheek. Shan Cai responded with small, shy grin and raised a hand to poke his dimple. Dao Ming Si lifted her into his arms and carried her up to the diving board. Ignoring her hysterical screams, he put her down, held her hand and jumped off the board. When Dao Ming Si rose up through the water surface, Shan Cai was clinging madly onto him, fear in one eye and anger in the other. “Dao Ming Si! You are SO dead!”
Everyone else burst into laughter. “Good job, Ah Si!” cried Mei Zuo, “I didn’t know Shan Cai the weed is scared of heights! And we all didn’t know she has such a fleshy front and behind!”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Lei, you’re disappointed with me again, aren’t you?” asked Jing, entering Hua Ze Lei’s hotel room and closing the door behind her.
He was sitting on the edge of his bed with a digital camera in his hand, scanning through the photos he had taken so far. He gestured for her to sit beside him and began showing her some of his favourite photos. “Jing, look at this one. At dinner last night, I caught Shan Cai feeding Ah Si!” He pressed the ‘next’ button a few times. “And this one. At breakfast this morning, while Shan Cai was talking to Xiao You, Ah Si was stealing food from her plate!” He pressed the ‘next’ button a few times. “And this one. When we were all in the pool, I asked a cleaner to take a photo of us.” He zoomed into the photo. “But looking closely, you can see that Ah Si was fixing Shan Cai’s bikini straps in the water! We didn’t see that happening!”
“Lei, that’s wonderful,” she said plainly, “Now, can you answer my question?”
“But don’t you think these photos are really cute?” he asked dejectedly, wondering why she never appreciated the simpler and sweeter things.
Jing smiled. “Yes, Ah Si and Shan Cai are very cute. I’ve answered your question. Can you answer mine?”
At that very moment, Hua Ze Lei felt so childish and useless. “Yes, I’m disappointed.”
“Then tell me why,” she persisted.
“Jing, you’re a wonderful person and you’ve always looked after me. But some of the things you do are just very disappointing.”
“Is it because I’m too determined? Or is it because I’ve done things simply for my image?”
“Can you stop thinking about your image?!” Hua Ze Lei snapped, hurt filling his eyes. “You never really commit yourself faithfully to anything, Jing.” After a short hesitation, he continued with the new courage he had learnt from Shan Cai, “It’s always for the media. You play five instruments and you speak five languages. You’ve done windsurfing, tennis, ballet and canvas painting. You fly off to Paris after high school, and next minute, you’re Miss Teen of France and you even got yourself an international modelling career. Then you come back to Taiwan and discard your father’s enterprise to finish your law degree in France, claiming to serve the poor and needy for the rest of your life. But when I went to Paris to find you, I see you running off with some rich French man. A week later, it’s announced worldwide that you’re engaged. Eight months later, you’re back again. You tell us that you never took the relationship seriously and everything was done for the media to boost your reputation.”
Jing was not even slightly angered or insulted by his words. Instead, she was saddened but decided to comfort him. “Lei, it’s hard to explain, but it’s really not like that. I have my reasons. I promise.”
“Reasons? Like, fame?”
“I do admit that I’ve done some things for fame and reputation, especially during my teenage years. And it’s true that I went in the French beauty pageant for fame, just like any young girl would if they had the looks and the confidence. But Lei, honestly, studying law was definitely not for my reputation. And last time, when I left my father’s enterprise to go back to Paris, I truly did believe I could help disadvantaged people.”
“But?”
Jing opened her mouth but nothing came out.
“What about that French man? Is his name Pierre? Didn’t you take him seriously at all?”
Her expression suddenly became tense and serious. “It’s very complicated, Lei,” she replied softly, “Much more complicated than you think.”
Hua Ze Lei sighed. “Don’t you realise that some of the things you do actually hurt the people who care about you?”
Jing looked away. “No, I don’t see how. Even if I did hurt people, then I didn’t mean to.”
He closed his eyes bitterly. “You’ve changed, Jing. A lot.”
“No, I haven’t. What’s the matter, Lei?”
“You weren’t like that when we were young. Remember when you used to be like a sister to me? You told me stories and took me to different places. You used to be more compassionate. You’ve changed so much since you went to France.”
“People grow up, Lei. You really need to stop living in the past. It’s true that we used to be like brothers and sisters and we had a lot of fun together. But even real brothers and sisters have to grow up and take their separate paths in life.”
Hua Ze Lei made no response.
“I think I know,” she continued softly, “You’re disappointed because you’re hurt, right? Last time I came back to Taiwan, you thought I came back for you but I rejected you on the cruise. Then in Paris, I rejected you at the restaurant and left with Pierre. And this time, you thought I really was coming back for you but you’re wrong again.”
Hua Ze Lei made no response.
“Don’t love me, Lei. You know I won’t ever feel the same way towards you. I thought I’d made it clear to you by now.”
Still just a deadpan face.
“We’ve been friends since kindergarten. Keep it that way.” Jing patted his hand, stood up and headed towards the door. Hua Ze Lei watched her retreating figure with an unchanged expression, while silently, his heart shattered into a million pieces.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
F4 and the three girls were huddled under a tarpaulin at the rooftop of the Maple Hotel, preparing a barbeque dinner. It was snowing lightly and the smoke from the barbeque drifted to the edges of the tarpaulin before being defeated by the frozen air. The weather was very cold and bitter but nothing could beat the bitterness Hua Ze Lei felt in his heart.
Shan Cai frowned as she noticed Hua Ze Lei staring quietly at a piece of raw lamb chop on the table. She walked over to him, stood on tiptoes and flung an arm over his shoulders to cheer him up. “Lei, you can’t cook the lamb chop by staring at it. I mean, you’re really hot, but raw meat just doesn’t cook like that.”
As if Shan Cai had a magical effect on him, Hua Ze Lei smiled again and pinched her cheek playfully. “Ah Si, I think your girlfriend is hitting on me.”
“Shan Cai, get back over here.” Dao Ming Si waved a piece of cooked lamb chop around her face and grinned triumphantly. “Look, I’m sure being hot can cook lamp chops. You just need to be hot enough, like me.”
Everyone roared with laughter and Mei Zuo fell off his chair. “Shan Cai, you better be careful that Ah Si doesn’t cook you next! You know how much he wants to taste you!”
Dao Ming Si and Shan Cai’s faces grew bright red. Shan Cai was almost ready to wrestle Mei Zuo who was rolling on the ground laughing. “Mei Zuo, you are DISGUSTING! You better get off the ground before you get even dirtier!”
“You know what?” said Jing, “I’ve been wondering why you guys keep teasing Ah Si and Shan Cai.”
Xi Men laughed. “Because they keep giving us reasons to tease them!”
“They’re just a funny couple,” Hua Ze Lei commented, “They came from totally different worlds with totally different personalities. But they still have the most important thing in common and that’s their love for each other.”
Mei Zuo nodded in agreement. “And their tomato faces whenever we start talking about –”
“Don’t even START!” Shan Cai and Dao Ming Si yelled in unison.
“Actually,” Mei Zuo continued with a grin, “They have a lot of things in common. They’re both so stubborn and violent and...they both keep hiding their intimate moments –”
WHACK!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“NO! NO! Please! Don’t let go! Please! Dao Ming Si, don’t let go!”
“It’s alright, Shan Cai. Don’t give up. No matter what happens, I promise I won’t let go.”
“Aww, how sweet! What is this? Titanic replay?”
Dao Ming Si was worried to his bones, holding a mortified Shan Cai in him arms, while Mei Zuo never gave up on teasing the poor couple. It was midday and the group was skiing, or so attempting, down a small hill covered with thick, fresh snow. It took them almost half an hour to travel ten metres, with Dao Ming Si and Shan Cai practically stuck together even though they were both on their own skis. Mei Zuo was holding their sticks for them, while the two moved inch by inch and rolled over together every time they lost balance as a whole. Dao Ming Si, the almost professional skier, obviously never had so much trouble skiing until Shan Cai came into his life.
“Rose!” Mei Zuo cried out to Xi Men who was helping Xiao You a few metres ahead, “You must do me this honour...promise me you will survive...that you will never give up...no matter what happens...no matter how hopeless...promise me now, and never let go of that promise.”
“Jack!” Xi Men yelled back to him, “I promise. I will never let go, Jack. I’ll never let go.”
“Xi Men!” cried Xiao You, panicking has she felt Xi Men loosen his grip on her shoulders.
Xi Men grinned sheepishly. “I mean, Xiao You! I promise I will never let go!”
Hua Ze Lei and Jing chuckled at the hilarious scene before them, then together with Mei Zuo, they skied past the two hopeless pairs, zooming down the hill.
“Mei Zuo! Give us back our sticks!” cried Shan Cai. Too late.
Hua Ze Lei looked back at Shan Cai and Xiao You, then looked in front at Jing. Obviously, he did not need to help her with skiing; she was almost as experienced as F4. Sighing inwards, he shook his head miserably and wondered why she was always so different to other girls. Jing was just too strong. Too independent. Too intelligent. She never gave him, or anyone else, even a small chance to be by her side and care for her. If any man wanted to love her, all he had to do was admire her, praise her, then wait for her to never choose him. Hua Ze Lei was not sure if he could manage to be another one of these countless foolish men.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Shan Cai walked out onto the sheltered veranda of her hotel room and looked up into the cold night sky. It was still snowing. She felt someone wrap a thick pink nightrobe over her thin little nightie, then a strong pair of arms encircling her waist from behind. Dao Ming Si was always so beautiful towards her. She leaned backwards into his warm, welcoming chest, allowing him to hold her as closely as he desired.
Shan Cai sighed. “Look at the sky. It’s always so cloudy. There aren’t any stars.”
“Of course it’s cloudy,” Dao Ming Si said softly, “It’s snowing. But the stars are still there. You just can’t see them from here.”
“Yes, I know,” she said with a smile, “I’m not that stupid.”
“It’s eleven o’clock. Do you want to stay up for another hour to welcome your special day?”
Shan Cai giggled. “Oh yeah, I almost forgot. It’s my birthday tomorrow. Three days before Christmas.”
“And you’ll be two decades old. You’re catching up, you know? For the next few months, you’ll only be one year younger than me, until I turn twenty-two.”
“Two decades? You’re making me sound ancient!”
“What about Jing? She’s almost a quarter of a century!”
“Dao Ming Si, you’re a pighead.”
He laughed. “Well, aren’t you happy that you’ve got such a cute pighead for a boyfriend?”
Shan Cai nodded. “Yeah, and my birthday reminds me that I’ve known this pighead for almost a year.”
“A year,” Dao Ming Si pondered, “So much has happened and it’s only been a year.”
Shan Cai turned around and slid her arms around him, resting her head against his chest. “I’m looking forward to next year. There’s so much we need to do together.”
“Only next year?” Dao Ming Si asked, stroking her hair, “I’m looking forward to EVERY year.” He wrapped his arms around her again and gave her a gentle squeeze, locking her into his life.
01-Jan-2005 HAPPY 28th BIRTHDAY JERRY!