Beginning of The End

XXII

While the Punjab Kings had missed their place by a whisker of the net run rate, the skipper did not feel as hollow as he probably should have been feeling after the series of losses. The feeling of content, the revival of peace in his heart had more to do with a certain Virat Kohli more than anything.

And although the clock was just a few inches short of grazing one, nothing could have delighted Anushka more than seeing the two grinning monkeys at the door that night.

There was a reassuring smile on Virat's face as the two boys bombarded her with 'missed you's, which were quickly followed by demands of seeing their princess and, she knew things were beginning to set themselves right.

Mayank and Rahul had refused to budge from their positions, their eyes fixed on the angel sleeping inside while they argued that they had to make up for all the time they had missed out on with her.

They could see the caution lurking behind Virat's soft smiles, the subtle fear that tinted his eyes, but they understood his concerns better now. They knew better than to take his worry as mere paranoia now.

But Virat tried his level best not to let them ponder over his hurdles, bringing up a new topic to pull their leg every few minutes. And before they knew it, their night had ended already.

But neither of them felt the previous dread as they departed the next morning, for their hearts were filled with memories now. Memories that held teasing grins, and obnoxiously loud giggles, screeches of laughter, and throat that ached with the same.

Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, and Royal Challengers Bangalore were the four teams who had managed to fight their way into the playoff slots this season. And all four teams were invited to celebrate the occasion by the management.

Quite unsurprisingly, Virat had spent the last few days contemplating how to approach his wife regarding the matter. It wasn't that he didn't want to take Anushka and Vamika with him, but the idea left him a little unsettled.

Because Virat knew where he stood with the team now. They were not the boys with whom he had traveled the world, thirteen of them sleeping in the same room after playing FIFA for hours and pranking each other with ice cubes sliding down their shirts anymore.

They were not in their twenties anymore, partying all night long and sneaking out of hotel rooms to go cycling across Colombo at midnights. Their numbers were not on his speed dial anymore, and he was sure neither of them had his as their own.

Virat had known where he stood with the team for a long time now, maybe even before he'd chosen to leave everything behind. Maybe that was part of the reason why he had chosen to do whatever he did.

But he had never wanted his family to go through the same, the awkward stares and tight-lipped smiles where the pause between their words felt overwhelmed with stress.

Virat just wanted things to be simpler for the women in his life at this point because they had never deserved any of the things that they had to suffer through.

Of course, Anushka was no idiot to miss any of these happenings. She could see that the boxes of tea had begun to shrink alarmingly, and her husband had started to force smiles on his face whenever he thought she was looking at him. The way he held Vamu for a little longer than he usually would and made sure that her feet didn't touch the ground.

When she saw him about to empty the last box of peppermint tea Maya had sent him, she knew she had to bring this to a stop. "Virat, give that to me." She demanded and snatched the box away from him.