Cardigan.

4| Lingering Thoughts.

Chapter Four: Lingering Thoughts.

The morning hours passed with casual conversations among the cricketers, discussions revolving around practice sessions, schedules, and upcoming games. Shubman and Ishan, not wanting to overstay their welcome, decided it was time to bid farewell.

"We should head back, Ishan." Shubman suggested, exchanging polite goodbyes with KL Rahul and his family.

Ishan nodded in agreement, understanding the unspoken cues. "Yeah, time to give them their space." He concurred, both friends sharing a glance that spoke volumes of their mutual understanding.

Well the best friends stayed together, they were eachother's brothers from another mother afterall.

As they made their way home, Ishan took the wheel while Shubman scrolled through his phone absentmindedly.

Among the notifications on his Instagram, a certain follow caught his eye - @sriyaashetty.

A smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he swiftly followed her back, choosing to keep his phone aside to engage in conversation with Ishan.

Meanwhile, in a different part of the city, Sriya's phone lit up with a notification: @shubmangill has requested to follow you.

She accepted the request, the username triggering faint fragments of memories from the previous night. However, her recollections were hazy and fragmented, leaving her in a state of perplexity.

The dimly lit room felt suffocating as her thoughts turned invasive and haunting. Memories, fragmented and unclear, clashed with her attempt to piece together the events from the previous night.

"I must have done something embarrassing. Maybe I made a fool of myself in front of Shubman," Sriya thought, her brow furrowing in worry.

Doubt and unease clouded her mind, weaving together a tapestry of possibilities, each one more unsettling than the last. "What if I said or did something inappropriate? What if I ruined things between us even before they started?" she fretted, her anxiety escalating with each passing moment.

Sriya's heart raced, her pulse quickening with the weight of uncertainty. The inability to recall the events gnawed at her, leaving her with a sense of dread and self-blame.

"Did I puke over him while I was drunk or wait, did I rape that guy?" Sriya's thoughts spiraled into a chaotic mess, each conjecture more distressing than the last. Guilt and self-reproach crept into her mind, adding to the whirlwind of confusion.

Torn between the need to remember and the fear of what she might discover, Sriya grappled with the unsettling fog of forgotten memories. She searched her mind, hoping for clarity yet finding only fragmented glimpses of the night, leaving her trapped in a labyrinth of distressing uncertainties. She decided to ignore her thoughts for a while and pulled out her phone to post something.

@sriyaashetty posted

liked by klrahul, athiyashetty, shubmangill, ishankishan23, virat.kohli, rohitsharma45, and 67390 others.

Sriyaashetty Feeling like I'm in a never-ending game of guess what?

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athiyashetty: what are those lingering thoughts about?
↪ sriyaashetty: nothing worried about the interview.
↪ ishankishan23: you applied for a job? I mean why?
↪sriyaashetty: don't normal people do that dude.

virat.kohli: ❤️
↪sriyaashetty: 💛
↪ rohitsharma45: Vi, that's a betrayal, you didn't comment on my recent post.
↪sriyaashetty: no fighting in my comment section guys!

shubmangill: looking pretty :p
↪ sriyaashetty: thanks, love. <3

ishankishan23: @shubmangill thanks, love. <3
↪virat.kohli: @shubmangill thanks, love. <3
↪ rohitsharma45: @shubmangill thanks, love. <3
↪shreyasiyer96: @shubmangill thanks, love. <3
↪klrahul: @shubmangill thanks, love. <3
↪ anushkasharma: @shubmangill thanks, love. <3
↪ shubmangill: not you too Nush bhabhi!! 😩
↪virat.kohli: why not kid, she is my wife.
↪ rohitsharma45: and my twin surname sibling.
↪ anushkasharma: sorry Gill, but my dil asks me to not to support you.
↪ shubmangill: betrayed 😕
↪siryaashetty: stop spamming that guys! @shubmangill us, betrayed two.

randomusername: what happened here?
↪ ishankishan.fanclub: Shubman x Sriya happened, according to Ishu's comment.
↪user1: they are lovely though.

shubmanlovers.77: humari bhabhi kaisi ho? Sriya bhabhi jaisi ho!!

ishankishan23 liked this comment.
↪

shubmanlovers.77: OMG!! Ishan liked!! ❤️
↪shubiexheart: it means it confirmed!! 😭
↪user2: I do ship them. But Shubman looks the best with Ishan. IshMan above all people. 🛐
↪shreyasiyer96: lmao true though, I support you in that @user2.
IshMan.🛐
↪ ishankishan23: @shreyasiyer96 we are supposed to ship someone else, not me and Shubman please.
Plus I do love him a lot, but I really think we are not romantic involved into eachother. #Shubiya # Shubriya

Hey Guys,
Here's the fourth Chapter of the story.

How was it? Please comment your views.

Any guesses for the next one?

See you soon!

~yours author, Sonakshi.