QT: Don't fall in love with the Male Lead

Chapter 147: Don't walk out

Xi Zirui's initial plan is to walk right out of the NNI's complex's doors, and then just figure things out from there.

He's stopped by security, who tell him he can't just walk out without authorization form the producers, so Xi Zirui demands an audience with the producers.

"We can't let you go," A middle-aged man with a thick mane of hair and thin moustache tells him. He reclines on his leather chair and gives Xi Zirui an accessing look across the glass table. "And honestly I don't know why you'd want to, your numbers are good, you have a good chance of debuting."

"I've changed my mind, I want to leave the show," Xi Zirui says, crossing his arms.

"You've signed a contract, if you terminate it before the end of the show you'll incur in a penalty," the man says. "Of one million yuan."

Xi Zirui shrugs, he'll be too dead to pay anyway. "Fine."

The man arches an eyebrow at him, but eventually lets out a drawn-out sigh. "I'll give you a week to think things over."

"I've made up my mind."

"Take the week kid, you'll thank me later," the man insists, and then gestures for an assistant to escort Xi Zirui out.

---

When he gets back to the house Han Yu is already there, along with all the other trainees. Xi Zirui must look terrible because all of them give him long accessing looks.

He ignores everyone and makes a beeline for the dorm room, intent on staying in bed until a week has gone by and he can finally leave this stupid show.

He's already curled up in a ball under the covers when the door creeks open and Han Yu pokes his head in.

"Is everything okay? You never returned to practice, Liao laoshi was really pissed," Han Yu says, speaking softly as if Xi Zirui is a fussy cat who might startle at the sound of his voice.

"They didn't let me leave," Xi Zirui says, hugging his knees to his chest, his back still turned to the door.

"What?" Han Yu asks, taking a first step into the room before thinking better of it and retreating. "Why do you want to leave the show? Isn't this your dream?"

Xi Zirui lets out a bitter laugh. Any hope he might still have harbored that Han Yu might remember him goes up in smoke.

"No, but apparently it's yours," he says, bundling himself in a tighter ball of comforters. "I'm afraid you'll have to go to the trouble of finding someone else to make friends with."

Han Yu doesn't reply to that, and when Xi Zirui chances a look backwards at the doorway he's gone.

---

There's some type of communal activity in the living room -- Xi Zirui hears giggles and laughter from time to time -- but no one tries to invite him to join.

He ends up falling asleep, half-dressed and without having dinner.

In the morning he makes himself feel better about his empty stomach with the knowledge that at least no one got any interesting footage of him.

Several other trainees are already up and walking around the dorm, getting ready for the day by the time Xi Zirui wakes up. He chances a glance at the top bunk and finds the bed made and Han Yu nowhere to be seen.

"Where is Han Yu?" Xi Zirui asks the nearest person, unable to stop himself.

"I haven't seen him," the boy says, with a shake of his head that sends his floppy hair swinging.

There's no sign of Han Yu in the living room, and when Xi Zirui glances outside the windows he doesn't find him in the garden, either.

"I've heard you left practice in a hurry," Shen Yun says from the sofa, clutching a mug of fragrant cinnamon tea to his chest. "Liao laoshi can be very demanding."

"I heard you and Han Yu practiced the couple's dance for Sunday's presentation, is it true?" Shen Yun's little minion asks, his dark eyes shining. 

"Of course not," Shen Yun scoffs. "You saw how badly he did in his dance presentation, obviously Liao Min wouldn't be that reckless."

If circumstances were different, Xi Zirui would take his time to thoroughly humiliate Shen Yun, possibly even make him cry -- as it stands he doesn't have the energy for anything besides a brief eye-roll.

Today they're supposed to spend the day training, with both Bai Mi and Su Xueyi, but Xi Zirui just hightails it right back to the dorm after quick breakfast.

He might not be able to leave, but he'll be damned if they make him do anything he doesn't want to.

Luckily, no one bothers him, and no cameramen come in either. He's still being recorded by the cameras behind the walls, but at least he doesn't notice as much.

He doesn't know how much time passes before he hears a knock at the door and Han Yu's voice asking, quietly, "Can I come in, gege?"

Xi Zirui feels the bitter sting of tears prickling his eyes, but does his best to swallow them down. "It's your room too."

The door opens, but Xi Zirui hears two sets of footsteps walking in.

"Gege, there's someone I really want you to talk to."

Curiosity wins out in the end, and Xi Zirui pops his head out of his cocoon of blankets, coming face to face with Li Siqi.

She has a pair of bulky headphones around her neck, and is wearing a vest with all kinds of key cards and passes attached to it -- marking her as someone from the production team.

"I think you might have seen something that gave you the wrong impression," Han Yu says, sitting down on Xi Zirui's bed, a respectable distance away.

Xi Zirui eyes him warily. 

He looks as beautiful and magazine-spread perfect as ever, but there's a faint darkness under his eyes that the shows industrial level concealer isn't able to hide, and he looks more haggard than usual.

"I'm listening," Xi Zirui says, sitting up and hugging his knees to his chest under the blankets.

Li Siqi taps her foot insistently on the floor, looking impatient. "Look, can we speed this up, I have work to do?"

Han Yu nods and takes a big breath. "The thing is...I'm not a real contestant."

Xi Zirui hears the words but isn't sure he fully understands them. "Then what are you...part of the production?"

"Technically, I'm not supposed to reveal this information, ever, and I'm only doing it because you already asked to leave the show, so the big boss agreed to let me try it," Han Yu says, the words coming out of him in a rush. "I was hired to play a character."

Ah, he gets it now. 

Han Yu isn't an ambitious contestant in an idol training show. It's much worse than that -- he's an actor hired to keep things interesting in case it gets boring in the house.

"That changes nothing," Xi Zirui says, feeling even more hollow than before.

Han Yu panics a little. "No, you're not listening. I don't know what you saw of me, but maybe you sneaked in a cellphone-"

Li Siqi cuts him off. "You're no supposed to do that, by the way."

"Yes thank you," Han Yu says, shooting her a glare and mouthing something Xi Zirui can't make out. "The point is, what you saw...none of it was me. Anything I said -- it was just for the character I was playing."

Xi Zirui nods. "So you got close to me because you were playing a character?"

Han Yu buries his head between his open palms. "No, it's not as involved as all that. I just thought you were interesting and decided to talk with you. My original brief was to sow a bit of discord and create some tension between the different cliques that would form organically."

Li Siqi nods. "Yeah, but then we saw that the fans were reacting well to his proximity with you -- both the ones who like it, and the ones who hate it -- so we just told him to do continue spending time with you and do what came naturally."

Han Yu nods, eagerly. "That's right."

Xi Zirui looks between the two of them in a mix of disbelief and confusion. "Am I supposed to believe you just because you brought someone who works for the same show keeping me here against my will?"

Han Yu's eyes widen, probably only now realizing the fault in his logic -- something he never considers before it's too late.

Li Siqi snaps her fingers in front of Xi Zirui's face. "Aiyo, who died and made you the center of the universe?"

When Xi Zirui doesn't answer she goes on, "Me and him go way back. I got him this gig because I know his grandma is sick and he could use the extra money. If he didn't care about you he wouldn't go to all this trouble to set things straight."

Boldly, Han Yu scoots a little closer to Xi Zirui on the bed. "I'm telling the truth, gege, I swear I'm not using you. I'm not going to debut or anything, I'm supposed to stay here until the final to generate speculation among viewers."

Xi Zirui wavers. 

He wants to believe Han Yu, but his glib words in the interview are still ringing clearly in his mind.

"You have one week," he says, after some deliberation. "You have one week to convince me."