If This Feelin' Flows Both Ways | ShubIsh

XI

Its almost night when Hardik leans back against the armrest of the plush hotel couch, staring at Shubman with the kind of exasperation usually reserved for a younger sibling who just can't stop messing up.

In his hand is a whiteboard marker, which he twirls between his fingers like a weapon, which Shubman does seem scared of. On the small table in front of him, he's drawn a surprisingly detailed diagram of the hotel's layout.

"Alright, Gill," Hardik says, tapping the map with the marker. "Run me through it one more time."

Shubman groans, dragging a hand through his hair. "Broo, we've been over this five times. I know what to do. I get it."

"I don't care if you get it," Hardik says, rolling his eyes. "This is our Pocket Dynamo that we're talking about here. He's like a squirrel on three cans of Redbull. You need to be prepared."

Shubman sighs, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. He glances at the map, then back at Hardik, his jaw tightening with determination. "Fine. Uh, Ishan would be holed up in Surya's room. And Jasprit will be handling the part of dragging Ishan out of the room. He'll convince Ishan it's just a casual late-night swim."

"Okay," Hardik says, nodding. "And what do you think would happen when Ishan sees you?"

Shubman hesitates. "He'll probably try to run..?"

"Definitely try to run," Hardik corrects. "So what do you do?"

"I... I tell him not to leave?" Shubman says slowly, as if testing the words in his mouth. "I ask him to stay. I... I don't know." He pauses, his voice catching. "I'll just tell him everything."

Hardik tosses the marker onto the table with a satisfied smirk. "There you go. Easy."

"Easy?" Shubman raises an eyebrow. "This plan hinges entirely on me not screwing up the speech of my life."

"Don't overthink it too much kiddo," Hardik says, clapping him on the back. "Just speak from the heart. You're good at that. And hey, if you mess it up, at least you'll have a funny story to tell the guests at your wedding."

Shubman groans again, burying his face in his hands. "You're the worst."

"I know that you know I'm the best," Hardik counters. "Now get out of here and practice looking romantic and talking smooth. You've got maybe about three hours before showtime."

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Meanwhile, Ishan is in his room, scrolling through reels on his phone in a futile attempt to distract himself. He's halfway through a video of a cat named Megatron falling off the counter when there's a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" he calls, not moving.

"It's me," Jasprit's voice says from the other side. "Open up."

Ishan drags himself to the door and opens it a crack, peering out at his teammate suspiciously. "What do you want?"

Kuldeep raises an eyebrow. "Nice to see you too, sunshine. Get up, we're going for a swim."

Well, that's suspicious. Ishan blinks.

"It's almost midnight."

"So?" Jasprit shrugs, leaning casually against the doorframe. "The pool's still open. And you've been sulking all day. Come on, it'll be cool."

"I'm not sulking," Ishan mutters defensively while pointing a finger at the other man, but Jasprit just gives him a look.

"Ten minutes," Jasprit says firmly. "Or I'm coming back with Hardik, so that he can annoy you and drag you out the bed to push you into the pool."