Clean Bowled

3

Ishan woke up disoriented to the incessant knocking on the main door. Having slept late at night, he took time adjusting to his surroundings and woke up groggily murmuring incoherent words in his mind. Ben Stokes itni subah kaun aa gya?  A typical Ishan trait! Well the sunshine was a total grump when it came to waking up early. 9 AM. Early? Well, nevermind!

"Arre bhai ruk, darwaaza tod dega kya?" He let out a scream of frustration as he managed to put on his t shirt. Grabbing the keys, he opened the door only to be tackled by two lanky men and a slightly heavy one who together screamed 

"Ishuuuuuuu.... hum aa gaye"

Pushing them away, he stood up with his hands on his waist and looked at them with a done face who in turn looked at him like kids looking at their favourite cartoon

"Bin bulaye aaye ho, ab chale jao. Sone nahi dete mujhe ek din chain se Behenchod" He grumbled and left the drawing room and grabbed a bottle from the fridge and drank the water in a go. The other three boys followed him like puppies till there.

"Ishu jaldi ready ho jaa, hum trip pe jaa rahe hai"

"Hein ji?"

"Haan ji" Shubman said flashing his dimples

"Bhai tum dono apna haan ji accha ji baad mein karna, abhi Ishan ready ho jaldi, 12 baje ki flight hai"

"Tum dono se baat karna hi bekaar hai, Mayank tu bata yeh kya trip ... kya bol rahe hai yeh dono?"

Mayank looked at him with a scared expression and said "Woh na humne decide kiya hai ki hum trip pe jaa rahe hai."

"Haan toh nikal, pehli fursat mein nikal"

"Arre bhai... tu samjha nahi, hum jaa rahe hai... trip pe" Abhishek said with a hint of enthusiasm in his tone

"Haan toh acchi baat hai jao na trip pe, mere ghar ko dharmshala kyun banake rakha hai? Ishan screamed in frustration, still confused as to why he was a part of this entire conversation.

"Hum sab as in tu, main, Mayank aur Abhi jaa rahe hai trip pe, ab tu apna bag pack kar le. Breakfast main order karta hoon." Shubman explained calmly only to be interrupted by a whiny Abhishek 

"Mera naam last mein kyun liya? Trip plan maine -" He stopped in the middle and scratched his head with a silly smile as the other three glared at him, glares that could drill holes.

"Sharma. Shut up and put your finger on your lips till we reach the airport, will you?" The ever calm and composed Mayank said in a sickly sweet voice that left no room for further discussion.

"Nevermind, coming back to the topic, first of all What in the actual world? Mujhe yeh baat do ghante pehle kyun pata chal rahi hai?"

"Woh actually kal raat hi Abhishek ne plan kiya aur tickets bhi book kar liya jaldi kyunki uske baad tickets nahi milti" Ishan glanced at Abhishek who looked funny as he bobbed his head like a kid, his fingers positioned on his lips.

"Hmm waise jaa kahan rahe hai?

"Kashmir"

"Are you sure isne Kashmir ki tickets book ki hai, Kanyakumari ki nahi?" Ishan joked and with that Shubman and Mayank joined him only to laugh like hawks at the expense of their other friend who looked visibly annoyed and hmphed. 

Stabling himself from the hearty laugh, Mayank prompted, 

"Accha chal ab, packing kar le, in fact main help kar deta hoon"

"Main mana karne wala tha but Kashmir ki lalach mujhse sambhali nahi gayi. Huhhh, aur Shubi tu breakfast order kar"

"Okay ji" Shubman said while Abhishek elbowed him hard on his stomach.

"Out of character matt ja bc, kya haan ji okay ji laga ke rakha hai tab se?"

Shubman straightened himself as he realized the level of affection he just showed. Just some more time Kaka, Ish isn't going through a good phase, pehle usse happy karna hai firr usko confess karna hai, tab tak character mein rehna hoga, FOCUS. Shubman thought to himself.

Ishan locked the door of his room in the pretext of getting ready. He leaned his back on the door and wiped a stray tear that left his eye. For he knew his friends too well. He knew they were here for making him feel better, they were here missing out on their practice, just to take him out of this hell hole where he'd resent himself time and again. And on normal occasions, Ishan would have denied but now that his friends did so much for him, he would comply. For once, he would give in and indulge himself in the fun and happiness of the present and not dwell in the regret of the past or the thoughts of his future. As much as he showed his fake annoyance to these people, he loved them with all his heart.

..................

Hello guys! This update was a gift for all of us because our boys are into the playoffs. EE SALA CUP NAMDE! And moreover, a light chapter, to end your weekends with a smile! Drop in inline comments guys, I absolutely love them and tell me in the comments if you're liking it so far or if you have any suggestions for me. Love you all loads. 

P.S. We have reached 1.3 K reads, and it is so heartwarming. Thank you so much.