Showbiz Scandal: The Official Announcement of My Ex and Myself-Chapter 436: I Can’t Sleep Without You

Good shows are worth waiting for, as long as there’s an opportunity.

Yu Xia was very tempted by this rare opportunity and decided to invest in an advanced training class upon returning home.

The training class was semi-closed, requiring her to spend most of her day there, so she conveniently rented a hotel suite nearby to stay in.

When Xie Qingci returned for a brief rest and went home looking for someone, the house was desolate, with no one in sight.

Standing in the empty living room, he almost thought he’d come to the wrong place and ended up at his other home on the opposite side of the neighborhood. Taking a deep breath with his eyes closed, he picked up the phone to call her.

The call connected quickly, and he asked in a casual tone, "Sister, where are you? Did you go out to eat?" 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

It was mid-afternoon, an unusual time for anyone who didn’t sleep until noon to be going out for a meal.

When Yu Xia received the call, she was still taking notes, multitasking and paying no attention to the implication in his words.

"Huh? You’re back? Oh, I’ve enrolled in a class, doing some advanced training, so I’m not home."

Xie Qingci: "When will you be back? I’ll come to pick you up."

That’s when she realized, softly hissing a "tsk."

"Well, I won’t be coming home for a while, I forgot to tell you yesterday. Why don’t you stay at your place?"

"I can’t sleep without you," he casually uttered the cheesy line, then added, "Where will you be staying during this time?"

Yu Xia gave him the hotel address, repeatedly assuring him of her safety and that she wouldn’t mess around outside.

To soothe his wounded spirit, she even promised him that once she completed the training class, she’d stay home with him until the variety show began.

He reluctantly agreed, responding to each sentence with a nasal "mm."

Yu Xia had no choice, so she said many sweet words to coax him, almost ready to call him her darling.

Pretending to wipe sweat after hanging up, she thought this was truly a sweet burden.

Come dinner time, she returned to the hotel after her class and found a tall figure standing outside the suite she had booked.

He was wearing a trench coat, standing tall and striking. Hearing footsteps, he turned to look at her.

"...Why did you come over?" And with a suitcase, no less.

Xie Qingci casually said, "Didn’t I tell you? I can’t sleep without you."

...What a fib. Was he staying up all night every time he flew around for work announcements?

She rolled her eyes, walked over, and swiped her card to open the door.

"If you were coming over, why make me coax you? I talked myself parched for nothing."

He followed her in, dragging his suitcase as soon as the door opened.

"How could it be for nothing? I needed it."

As soon as they got inside, the suitcase was pushed to the side, its wheels spinning and bumping against the wall before coming to a stop.

Xie Qingci wrapped his arms around her, burying his head in the crook of her neck and taking a deep breath like he was inhaling.

Yu Xia patted him twice, but couldn’t move him. Seeing that he had no intention of engaging in any excessive behavior, she simply embraced his waist and back. With one hand behind him, she flipped open her notes and began reviewing what she learned today.

Unaware of her little actions, Xie Qingci spoke in a muffled voice, "When I got home, I thought I’d see you sitting on the sofa smiling at me, but when I opened the door, there wasn’t even a shadow."

As she got to the third line of her notes, she casually replied, "Oh, my bad."

He continued, "Living in a hotel alone isn’t safe, so I’ll keep you company."

"Why wouldn’t it be safe?"

"Hotels have a lot of people coming and going, it’s hard to manage. What if there are paparazzi or unwanted followers sneaking in? Besides, if you’re caught entering or leaving the hotel, they might write about it, saying you’re secretly meeting another man behind my back."

"..." She turned the page of her notes but couldn’t focus, so she clenched the notebook and slapped his waist.

Xie Qingci chuckled.

She stopped looking at her notes and asked him, "I’m here for acting training, I have classes, and can’t accompany you. Is it fun for you to stay here alone?"

"I won’t be resting for long either. I don’t need you to accompany me, it’s just a change of place to sleep."

She responded with an "oh."

"Wherever I am, that’s where home is, right?"

"Yes," he lazily admitted, "so you have to tell me wherever you go from now on."

"Alright, alright, let go. The hotel’s going to deliver dinner."

She had booked a luxury suite, which came with room service. However, she initially registered for one person dining, but now there were two of them, so the delivered dinner would definitely not be enough.

Yu Xia had no choice but to order takeaway for him. The two sat across from each other at the coffee table, exchanging bites with bowed heads.

Xie Qingci could be quite picky sometimes. Not only did he not really eat fruit, but he also only liked salty foods, steering clear of anything sweet and sour or slightly bitter.

He hardly seemed like someone who had to fend for himself when his parents weren’t around.

When she asked him about it, he justified confidently: "Everyone is picky to some extent. The difference is, others don’t have a choice, but I can buy only what I like to eat."

She recalled her own experiences and nodded in agreement: "Speaking of which, I used to particularly hate eating white radishes and winter melon, and my brother forced me to eat them. After Yu Yue was born, he had a new target, and I was finally spared."

A daily lament for poor Yu Yue.

Xie Qingci liked the atmosphere in their family, reminded of her sister-in-law’s gentle look while tutoring Yu Yue. He suddenly asked:

"Do you like children?"

Yu Xia glanced at him: "Not particularly."

She would tease other people’s cute and well-behaved kids, stroke others’ cats and dogs, but when it came to raising children or pets herself, she’d rather skip the cuddling altogether.

However—

"Do you like them?"

Who knows, maybe this solitary only child has a fondness for little ones; after all, Yu Yue got along well with him.

Xie Qingci shook his head: "I don’t like them either."

This distant topic had nothing worth discussing. The two exchanged glances and moved on to other subjects.

"Your drama is doing quite well. Although it’s unlikely to win awards, it’s great for consolidating your fan base as an actor."

"What about you? Do you have any roles lined up this year?" Xie Qingci asked.

She nodded, grinning as she said, "I have a chance to break into the film industry. That’s why I’m taking the time now to further my skills; filming a movie is different from shooting a TV drama."

Xie Qingci offered her peeled shrimp: "As long as you’re happy. I haven’t been reading scripts during this time. Mr. Yang suggested waiting for the upcoming mainstream dramas. It’s just as well; I don’t want other commitments during the variety show filming. It’s likely to be continuous, so we’ll have a month to stay there."

Yu Xia bit on the chopsticks, asking carefully, "Do you know what format it’ll take? Which guests will be there?"

"I heard there will be both couples and singles, simultaneously observed. The shooting location is in the countryside, and there will be challenge segments."

"Challenges?" She furrowed her brows, contemplated, then set down her chopsticks to take out paper and a pen, pondering in earnest.

"Probably a compatibility test; many variety shows have this segment. Just in case, we should rehearse in advance. Standing out too much earlier on and then messing up would lead to ridicule."

Even if the audience didn’t scorn them, it wouldn’t sit well with them personally.