10 A declaration

The party continued late into the night. It was not surprising really since it was summer break and everybody was reluctant to leave. The presence of Feng Gan insured that. To everyone's surprise, he mingled easily with the crowd as if they were part of his own circle. He was very gracious and accommodating. He and his sister went around spreading cheer, so to speak, so that not one of them felt uncomfortable mingling with a superstar.

Fan Bao had her own little posse, too. Of course, they were mostly young bucks eager to talk to and be with the little beauty. But for some unknown reason, Feng Gan was always by the lady's side, steering her away just as the boys were about to get to her. Fan Bao watched all these with a blasé air. She knew Feng Gan, or the old version of him. He had always been a possessive nut, jealous and suspicious of anyone, especially men. She didn't know if this modern version of him remembered the past or his role in it but it was really galling to find him here when she thought she had finally gotten rid of him.

The little matter of Huan Jing she and her stepfather had finally come to an agreement. Fan Bao was adamant that he would stay with her while Feng Xiao Ping was amused at her insistence.

"But where is he going to stay, Bao Bao?" he asked reasonably. "You must know he can't stay here with you. That's out of the question."

Fan Bao was stymied. She did thought that but her stepfather was right. She can't ask him to accommodate a boy he didn't know in his own house. That would be like eloping and asking him to pick up the tab for their getaway car.

"I'll move out and rent a house for the three of us then."

"The three of you?"

"Of course, Li Jun is coming with me. I can't do without him."

Feng Xiao Ping suddenly burst into peals of delighted laughter. Fan Bao looked at him like he had lost his mind.

"You remind me so much of your mother," Feng Xiao Ping said with a chuckle. "Ru Shi had the same devil-may-care attitude as you have. But you seemed to have forgotten something."

"What's that?"

"Ru Shi left you in my care until your 20th birthday. That means, I am your legal guardian until then. You do as I say and that's that," Feng Xiao Ping said. "And I say that boy will not live here with us. Is that clear?"

Fan Bao didn't say a thing. Her expression didn't change either but Feng Xiao Ping felt a cold chill ran down his back.

"Or I can just marry him," she said. "That would solve the problem."

Feng Xiao Ping was silent.

"That would be stupid," he said coolly. He looked at her with a baffled expression on his face. "He's that important to you? You don't even know him. Where he came from, who his family were. Nothing."

Fan Bao hesitated. She didn't want to reveal anything to him but she had to satisfy his curiosity otherwise he would persist in meddling. The presence of Huan Jing on her side was something she couldn't bargain with for anything or anyone, even the approval of a stepfather she actually had some affection for. But compared to what she had to do, Feng Xiao Ping didn't even merit a mention in her list of to-dos. She would just cut him down if he gets in her way and that's that.

"Fine, do as you wish. You wouldn't listen to me anyway," Feng Xiao Ping finally said when she remained silent. He was surrendering to her will with grace which Fan Bao was forced to acknowledge. "But I still won't allow him to stay here. The house next door is, however, for sale. It's not very big. Just a cottage which the owner wants to get rid of so he could retire to an island. You could consider buying that and letting your friend stay there instead."

Fan Bao thought about it and agreed. It was better than eloping with Huan Jing anyway. They were running out of time and everything had to be in place if they were to start their search, which was very soon.

That same night, Fan Bao was again visited by Huan Ji in a dream. Her feelings for him had always been complicated. Affection, disapproval, surprised attraction, these had become clearer with the passing of time and the years she had been away from him. But he had always been honest with her, even when she didn't appreciate it. Honest and brutal with it, sometimes.

In the dream, Huan Ji blamed her for leaving him. He had never understood, he said, how she could do that. To appear in his life and tell him fantastic things about the past and future then leave as if he didn't mean anything to her at all. She knew it was her innermost consciousness feeding his anger but she accepted the fact that she owed him. She followed Odo's command and showed herself to him because she had to. Now, he was dead and his son had taken his place by her side.

"Avenge me, Fan Bao. I didn't die from that accident. I was murdered. Avenge me. For my boy's sake," was Huan Ji's last words.

Fan Bao woke up with a gasp. It was cold yet her entire body was drenched in sweat. She pushed off the covers and sat up, combing her fingers thru the tangles in her hair. She went to the adjourning bathroom and took a shower, still thinking of the dream and Huan Ji's words. She came out wearing a bathrobe that barely reached her upper thighs.

Fan Bao frowned. The bedroom was in darkness, even the light from the bedside table was turned off. She walked towards the balcony and examined the door. It was unlocked. She was suddenly on alert and was about to turn around when someone grabbed her from behind. That someone dragged and tipped her to the bed where she fell and a hard body landed on top of hers. Fan Bao kicked and tried to scream but a mouth suddenly covered hers, kissing her ravenously, the lips sucking and licking at her lips and tongue.

"Mmmmp...let me go," Fan Bao freed her lips and demanded angrily. Even without the lights and she couldn't see in the dark, she could smell him. She knew who he was.

"I don't think I can," Feng Gan muttered hoarsely. "Not this time."

"You bastard, Feng Gan! Let go of me."

"You're mine, Bao Bao. You've always been mine."

His mouth devoured hers again. He tasted her like she was the sweetest fruit and he was craving it. His kiss was hot, passionate. He pulled the tiny bathrobe from her body and pressed her soft body tighter against him. His arms were like manacles that imprisoned Fan Bao to his hot and hard body like she was a missing part of him.

"I don't want this," she hissed, as he stopped her struggles by pinning her wrists to the headboard. "I don't want you!"

His answer was to capture her mouth again, sealing her words of protests by biting and nipping at her tongue. The kiss almost robbed Fan Bao of her breath until he freed her mouth and his lips roved downwards to her soft neck and the inviting creaminess of her exposed breasts. Feng Gan's mouth latched onto a pink nipple and sucked, hard. He groaned, and the lower part of his body became even more restless, parting Fan Bao's legs as his hunger for her almost drove him to the edge.

"Feng Gan!" Fan Bao moaned, trying to keep her legs closed together as Feng Gan's exploring mouth moved downwards and his tongue found the tiny bud that guarded her femininity.

"Don't!"

But Feng Gan had by this time reached the point of no return. The body under him was softer than any female. The feel of it was intoxicating, and her smell made his mouth water. She felt like a familiar dream that constantly teased at his sleep. She felt snug and soft. She felt like home. He buried his head between her legs and made himself familiar with her taste. He licked at her juices, ran his tongue over the seams of her sex and felt himself intoxicated, his erection hardening even more as it brushed against her inner thigh.

Fan Bao was losing it. She could feel herself weakening against his sensual assault. She pushed at him weakly but Feng Gan held her hand and pulled her towards him, his mouth again devouring hers with his own. His body pinned her down to the bed as his legs pushed her thighs further apart.

"Feng Gan," she moaned hotly in his ear. She wanted him to stop but she could feel herself falling with him into the abyss. And then it was too late as his hardened cock positioned itself between her legs and entered her body in one swift, forceful thrust. Fan Bao screamed at the unexpected pain. She kicked at him with her leg but Feng Gan held onto the flailing limb and thrust his hips forward until his cock deeply buried itself inside her.

"You're so tight," he rasped, his hands tightening around her hips. "God, Fan Bao. I want you. I've always wanted you."

"Stop," Fan Bao cried. "It hurts."

"It will get better," he crooned while biting her lips. "It only hurts the first time. God, I can't get enough of you."

They stayed like that for a few seconds before Feng Gan started moving his hips in a forward and backward motion. Fan Bao whimpered with the pain but it was soon replaced by an indescribable breathlessness as Feng Gan's movements became faster and more uncontrollable. He rode her like a wild stallion, his strong hips slapping against hers in a smooth rhythm as old as time. He buried himself deeper inside her as if he wanted to lose himself in her. Fan Bao was breathless from his assault, her long nails digging half-moon marks onto his back.

"Feng Gan," Fan Bao moaned, her lips dry.

"Let yourself go, darling. Let yourself go," he groaned, threading his fingers through her own while his cock continued its unrelenting thrusts deeper and deeper inside her.

"I...I can't."

"Yes...you..." he groaned harshly, sucking and licking at her soft neck as Fan Bao's body hurtled, twisting and trembling into the finish line. Feng Gan swallowed her moans of pleasure as he allowed himself to reach the most satisfying climax he ever had. He didn't pull out even when he emptied himself in her and into her, his body pouring out all its essence to mingle with hers. He stayed inside her even when he could feel her body relax and drift into sleep.

When she moved to escape his weight, he tightened his arms around her and his cock again stirred into life inside her. He began another thrusting motion that slowly roused Fan Bao from her sleep. She gave a little moan of protest but the pressure between her legs was building and Feng Gan was starting another fire inside of her.

They came again and again that night and early the following morning. Feng Gan was untiringly insatiable. He would allow Fan Bao a little sleep between bouts and then slowly wake her up with kisses that would lead to another passionate coupling. It was nearing dawn when Feng Gan finally allowed Fan Bao to sleep. He tightened his arms around her and kissed her eyelids as he settled beside her and closed his eyes.

The two of them slept until the morning passed. When Fan Bao finally woke up, the first thing she saw was the unruffled face of her stepfather looking at her with a faint smile. Fan Bao was surprised. She scrambled up and threw the bedcovers away.

"What happened? Is there something wrong?"

An arm suddenly threw itself around Fan Bao's body and tugged at the bedcovers to cover her nakedness. Fan Bao whipped her head around and when she saw who it was in bed beside her, she screamed. She continued screaming when she realized he was naked and she was naked. It couldn't be. It couldn't be.

"What did you do?" she screamed at Feng Gan. "What the fuck did you do?"

"Don't worry about it, dad," Feng Gan said, smiling happily as he pulled the irate Fan Bao to his side. "Bao Bao and I are getting married."

Fan Bao looked at Feng Gan then quick as a snake her right fist shot out and connected with his jaw with a loud thud.