Amyranth Presents:

A Meteor Garden fan fic

Where there are different situations, different backgrounds, and different
realities- a different universe. This is a story of treacheries and
betrayals.

Never Before, Never Again

Prologue- How it all started

It was a dull afternoon, the kind of weather that makes people just want to stay back home and sleep. Not particularly exciting for a Saturday afternoon. The sun shone lifelessly through a small oval-shaped window into an apartment high up on a building, quite dirty from old age and lack of maintenance. The inside of the apartment was uncomfortably small but the lack of furniture made it quite spacious, even though it was incredibly messy with belongings scattered all over the place. All there was in the bedroom was a small single bed and a Mahoney closet. A light fragrance of daffodils hung in the air, sweet and soft. The empty walls were painted a light baby blue and the lilac poke-a-dot curtains matched the sheet and pillows on the bed, giving the room a sense of warm feeling.

However, the atmosphere of the room today was tense, and that radiated off its inhabitant- a petite girl with long smooth black hair falling down to her waist. She was uncommonly pretty, though. The sun cast a shadow over the slender figure as she raced around the room, picking up her scattered belongings. Her name was Shan Cai. She had been pacing around the room for the past two hours, picking up all her possessions off the ground and cramping them into a little suit case that lay open on her bed. Yet despite her enormous efforts and the long amount of time she has spent, the room looked no different, if not the same, then even more unorganised as before. It was as if she had done nothing in all this time. She tucked a loose strand of silky black hair behind her ear impatiently, and fell on her bed, eyes closed out of exhaustion. She had bags under her eyes and she looked like she hadn't slept for days.

After a few moments of rest, with a new surge of strength, she leapt up and started packing again. But now, possibly because of fatigue, she was moving much slower than before, and appeared more hesitant. Then without warning, her knees gave way and she collapsed onto the ground. Tears swelled in her eyes and for the first time in days, she allowed herself to shed them. Large drops of crystal clear tears fell from her dark sullen brown eyes and rolled down her cheeks, now flushed with pink, onto the carpet in front of her, dampening it. She sobbed, letting go of all the emotions bottled up inside of her, as if the tears were actually in reality her feelings.

Why did it have to come to this? She asked herself for the hundredth time. Why of all people did it have to be her? Why was fate so cruel? She never had wanted to be flourished with wealth or be famous and have fans mad about her. All she ever wanted to do was live a peaceful and happy life with the one she loved and their children. Yet destiny couldn't even grant her that simple wish. Why did she have to love him? She couldn't speak his name anymore. Every time she thought of him her heart ached, like someone stabbed her with a knife, except worse. For it wasn't just the physical pain it brought, it was the emotional and mental pains that were eating her from the inside. She felt like she was starting to rot from within. Something was gnawing her, day and night, never ceasing. And one day, it was going to eat through her.

Oh god, she cried silently, let me wake up and find that this was all just a dream, a nightmare. Let me wake up and find myself safe in my bed. Please god... But her silent prayers remained unanswered, just like all the other times. She sobbed uncontrollably and images of the past flashed past her, the same ones that have been tormenting her for the past week. All the times they had together, the good and the bad, playing like a silent movie. Stop, she begged silently. Stop, please stop. I can't handle it anymore. Stop, stop... "STOP!" her voice echoed through her empty apartment and only then did she realise that she had actually shouted the last bit out.

Her tears stopped and her breathing slowly evened. She had cried enough now, she told herself sternly. Now it was time to get over it. She got up again and once more she started packing. She would leave tomorrow, no today, she thought stubbornly as she stuffed a worn T-shirt into her suitcase. She paused. Only yesterday was she screaming that she didn't want to leave. How quickly things change, she thought dryly. But she knew she was right. She had to leave. Not because of the reasons they had suggested, but because she couldn't bear to be here anymore. No. This place has caused too much heartbreak. Too much.

Leaving was her best option. Maybe if she left for somewhere far enough, long enough, then all her memories of here would be erased from her mind forever. What a bliss that would be. She would go somewhere with little people, where no one would ask of her past. Perhaps in the woods. Shan Cai imagined herself as a hermit, living in the deep dark ends of the forest all alone for the rest of her life and then dying away quietly, all alone. That idea didn't seem very compelling. But anything was better than staying here and waiting to go mad. Maybe she'd meet a male hermit, fall in love and have little children hermits. Shan Cai suddenly had the image of a little hut with a smoking chimney, a tall heavy-built man with a gun in one hand and a dead dear swung over the opposite shoulder walking out of the woods approaching the hut, a woman wearing an apron coming out of it and greeting her husband with a smile and several children stopping their game of tag to hug their returning father.. Shan Cai found herself chuckling at the image and then stopped abruptly. She was laughing. She was actually laughing. She hadn't laughed all week, not since he... She cut herself off before she could go on.

Sighing, she went back to her packing. That was a dream, she thought bitterly to herself. And it was a dream that would never come true. She tried stuffing a skirt inside and punched it when it wouldn't go in. It was her only way of venting her frustration without doing any real damage to herself or her apartment. But unfortunately for her, she missed the skirt and instead her fist grazed against the zipper, slicing her skin. She winced in pain and rubbed it with her other hand, hoping the cut wasn't deep. She uncovered her hand and was shocked to see blood leaking out of the cut. She groaned inwardly. This wasn't a good day for her. And it all happened because of-

She sighed as she leapt on her bed. She couldn't escape it, she knew. No matter what she did, her mind kept sliding subtly back to him. She leant against her pillow, still rubbing her hand. How did she get herself into this mess? She asked herself. How did this nightmare start?

.:: Flashback ::.

It was a bright and cheery Sunday afternoon. The rush hours have passed and several shops were already closed, the owners eager to relax for a day. Most residents of the area were sitting back home, relaxing with the family and having a cuppa. The streets were quite empty, with only a few people out, unlike the myriads an hour or so ago.

Two figures exited a grocery store. One of them was a young man with short black hair, 6 foot or so in height and was quite lean. His companion was an attractive young lady around his age with long black hair. Each of them carried a large grocery bag, particularly the girl's, whose shopping bag completely blocked her sight. They were talking amiably and laughing hard, like they are the best of friends.

"And then he said-AH!" The young girl was cut of abruptly as she collided with someone, throwing her back a half a metre. The contents of the bag spilled everywhere and potatoes started rolling down the pavement. The young girl hurried back to her feet to check if the other person was hurt.

She had crashed into a man with raven black hair in the style of a pineapple, that if were in less tense situation, she would've laughed at. He was tall and athletic looking and was in his twenties. He had been walking along the footpath as she exited the shop, forming a T-intersection with him, which explained why he did not see her. Her view was completely blocked by the shopping bag she carried. The man was on his back and was getting up, obviously unhurt except for a few scratches and bruises.

"Oh my god... I'm so sorry... I didn't mean to... I didn't see you... I'm so so sorry," she apologised in a hurry, trying to make it up to the man. To both her surprise and relief, the man chuckled.

"Don't worry about it. Just be careful next time. If you keep this up, you might end up killing someone," he joked.

The girl blushed. "Sorry. If there's any way I can make it up to you...I could treat you to dinner or something-"

"Don't worry about it," the man said again, cutting her off. "It's no big deal. It was an accident, and accidents happen. See ya later." And then, with a wave of a hand, he took off.

The girl stood dumbstruck. Then she turned to her companion, who had stayed very quiet during this little incident, "Oi, thanks for helping me," she said sarcastically. But the man didn't answer her; instead, he looked thoughtfully at the other man's disappearing figure. This annoyed the girl even more.

"Hello? Earth to Qing He? Are you still here?" she asked irritably.

"Shan Cai," Qing He replied, turning to face her once more, a flabbergasted expression on his face, "Do you know who that was?"

"No," answered Shan Cai impatiently, "What's that got to do with it?"

"Everything," replied Qing He, the look of disbelief still on his face. Shan Cai looked at her friend curiously- he looked as if he just saw a ghost. "That man," said Qing He, swallowing hard, "you just ran into, is Dao Ming Si."

Shan Cai's jaw dropped in shock. "No way," she muttered. And seeing Qing He nod, she continued, "The Dao Ming Si?"

"The one and only," said Qing He painfully, "Shancai," he suddenly said, excitement flooding his eyes, "Do you know what this means?"

Shan Cai shook her head. What was Qing He playing at? She wondered.

"Shan Cai, if we can make Dao Ming Si fall for you, then you hack into his computer and get the information we need," he explained. There was a wild glimmer that Shan Cai couldn't recognize in his eyes.

Shan Cai shook her head disbelievingly, "No way," she said with absolute resolution. "No way am I doing that. Get someone else. I'm not doing it."

Qing He shook his head in disappointment, but it was directed to Shan Cai. "Don't you see Shan Cai?" he asked, bewildered, "This is our break. We've been waiting for something like this for years. And now we have it. You have to do it. This is our big chance. You can't blow it."

Shan Cai looked at Qing He as if he was mad, then she snorted, "What makes you think he'll fall for me? I'm not even pretty."

Qing He rolled his eyes. "Isn't it obvious?" he asked impatiently.

Shan Cai shook her head, having no idea what's going on. What has gotten into Qing He? Is he mad? How could he come up with such a plan?

"You've heard of Dao Ming Si's horrible temper, haven't you?" he asked her.

Shan Cai nodded. Who hasn't? But what did that have to do with Dao Ming Si liking her?

"Under normal circumstances, he would've shouted at you for running into him, with his temper. But he didn't, did he? And why is that? Because he likes you of course!" he explained, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world.

As much as Shan Cai wanted to deny it, she couldn't help but agree. Her reasons were running short and she had one last attempt, "What if he already has a girlfriend?" she retorted.

Qing He sighed, exasperated. "Honestly Shan Cai, you need to catch up on the gossip. Didn't you know that Dao Ming Si is one of the er... "handsomest bachelor in Taiwan"? He was voted that just last week and the tabloids were going crazy! Where were you?"

"I was-"Shan Cai started to say.

"Ok. Scratch that. Bad choice of words. But still Shancai. You have to do this. This is our possibly only chance to get Dao Ming Si. You don't want to ruin it, do you?" pleaded Qing He, his tone suddenly serious.

Shan Cai looked down. She knew what he said was true. But did she have the courage to do it? Was she strong enough to face the consequences if the strategies failed? A whole range of questions came to her head.

"Shan Cai, this is your duty. As a-"

But she interrupted him. "I'll do it," she said barely audibly. "I'll do it."

Qing He looked as if he just won a million dollars. Thank you Shan Cai, he said silently. You made a sacrifice for us. "We'll talk about the details with Matt tomorrow," he said.

But Shancai was already walking away, still holding her grocery bags, but she didn't seem to notice that it was nearly empty. Qing He was right, she thought, it was her duty. She walked on. She would do this. Her eyebrows furrowed. She had a bad feeling about this. But still she would do it. She had given Qing He her word, and she intended on keeping it. It was her duty to do this. And Mu Ye Shan Cai never neglects her duties.

.:: Flashback ::.

A/N: Well. Here's the first chapter. Well prologue. Hope you all like it. Please review and tell me what you think. I'd really appreciate it. I'll update my other one- Rainless Storm (/RainlessStorm/) soon. Please read it and support me.

That's all.

Cheers,

Amyranth.