ICT ONE-SHOTS (FRIENDSHIP)

World's tallest building (Rohit-Rahul)

"You know what's weird?"

Rohit looked up to see Rahul standing at his door, a Rahul with hair tousled and sleepy eyes, clearly having woken up from sleep.

"What?"

"When we lose, it's always Virat's fault," said Rahul.

Rohit blinked and waited for him to elaborate.

"When we win, it's the team's credit. Yours and mine in New Zealand last year, Shami and Jassi's at Lord's, Ash and Axar's in the England series..." Rahul pulled at his already messy hair in a savage sort of gesture. "But when we lose, it is always Virat's fault."

"I know," said Rohit, hoping his voice for sympathetic in spite of his exasperation as he rose to pull his teammate in by the arm.

Rahul caught the sarcasm and narrowed his eyes. "You don't look like you know."

"Oh no, I do know," said Rohit placatingly. "Is that why you woke up? To come and tell me when we lose, it's always Virat's fault?"

"Yes," said Rahul grouchily, "I couldn't sleep, I kept waking up from nightmares."

"That's what happens when you read media articles before going to sleep, kiddo," chided Rohit. "Hasn't eight years in international cricket taught you that much?"

"Eight?" said Rahul, sounding bemused. "I've been playing for India eight years?"

Rohit deadpanned.

"2014...2015...2016..." Rahul counted on his fingers. "...2020...2021... oh, it's really eight," he said in wonder.

"Rahul," said Rohit.

"Yes?"

"Go to sleep."

"What?" protested Rahul. "No!"

"You're talking crazy. You need to sleep."

"No, I'll tell you what we need to do," said Rahul, and had to pause owing to an enormous yawn. "We need to check on Virat."

"Jinks talked to him about an hour ago...he said Virat's doing ok," said Rohit.

"Jinks," said Rahul scornfully, as if Jinks was not the person who dealt best with Virat when sad. "What does he know?"

"And Mahi bhai sat with him on the journey back to the hotel," reminded Rohit. "He said Virat's ok, too."

Rahul made an uncomplimentary sound from inside his throat that said 'I don't want to speak against Mahi bhai but I know better.'

"Rahuliya," said Rohit, driven to the nickname. "Do you want Virat not to be ok?"

"What a ridiculous thing to say," scoffed Rahul, and yawned again. "I don't want him to not be ok, I just know he isn't...with all this negativity..."

"Maybe he stayed away from social media," suggested Rohit, "unlike you."

"You think so?" asked Rahul, now sounding sleepy.

"What were your nightmares about, now?"

"Nightmares?"

"You said you kept waking up from nightmares..." prompted Rohit.

"Oh," said Rahul. "They were about the match. The shots we played, the catches they took," he explained. "And once they even showed us lifting the trophy." He sounded genuinely baffled.

Rohit could not count on one hand how many times he'd seen his team lifting the 2019 World Cup; they were the worst nightmares of all. They made him wake up to a blank world.