Wo, Mein Aur Meri Sautan

2. wanna be your

Now back in the room all i could think of is how Shubman will react if he ever knows the truth. He'll be repelled, he'll be disgusted, he'll be mad over how i mislead him, he'll know every gesture ever from my side had ulterior motives, Okay i need to shut the fuck up. Maybe I'll take a warm bath and gaslight myself into sleeping as if everything is fine.

The water has run cold and my finger tips have wrinkled. It's been more than an hour since I've been here and let alone gaslighting, i couldn't even shut my mind. It just kept on conjuring the worst case scenarios ever. My phone ringing for the nth time forced me to get out of the tub and the bathroom.

Ten missed calls from some unknown number? Wtf! Okay it's ringing again.

"Hello, who's this?"

"Ish- what? Stop fucking around and open the door", the breathy voice said. Why did that person sound like a dying pig?

" Open the door Ishan" , it sounded very much like Shubman but an asthmatic one. But it couldn't be him and he didn't have asthma, right? Oh god, now I'm hallucinating too. Beautiful way to perish, congratulations.

"Open the fucking door, now", and that was followed by loud banging. Okay that's a real person outside my door which very much sounds like Shubman and is demanding to be let in.

I cracked open the door and peaked out clutching the door handle with one hand and the towel around my waist with the other. My eyes could have popped out of its sockets and rolled down the corridor at the figure hunched over and breathing hard in a Gujarat Titans jersey. Why did this guy look like Shubman? Was he a doppelganger?

"Why do you look like Shubman Gill?", I asked in all the seriousness i can muster.

"Fuck off you minion"

Okay that's definitely Shubman. He pushed me aside and walked in, collapsing face first on the bed. Did he forget he was staying in a different hotel? Did GT switch hotels? Yeah probably that's it. But what's he doing here?

"Can you stop your obtuse brain for a minute?", he turned his face to the side, eyeing me. "And what're you standing there with the door wide open? Shut it and come here"

What is Shubman doing here? Why is he here? Didn't the team host an after party? Where's Mayank? I need to-

" I'm tired Ish, I won a match you know. I can't answer all that now. So please stop that dense, dimwitted brain of yours"

What the hell? How did he just read my mind word by word? Something's definitely wrong here, oh yeah I'm probably still in the tub dreaming.

" Ishan, STOP. You're not just thinking, you're speaking it out loud"

"Oh my god! No, i did not just say all that out loud"

" Still doing it"

" Shubman, what the fuck is happening here? Are we in a stimulation? And more importantly what are you doing HERE?"

" Arre bhagwan mein yeh kiss pagal se pyar kar beta"

" Wrong hotel me, wrong room me apni team ki party chodkar tu aaya he aur yaha mein pagal hu? "

" Ishan did you really hit your head this bad? We should go to the hospital i guess"

Shubman stood up from the bed and walked towards me. His face, serious and in thought. Did he really think I needed to go to the hospital? But before i could respond he was cornering me and examining my face and head. He put up two fingers and started asking me questions. His stupid questions are really driving me insane.

"Stop, just stop. I'm absolutely fine. Now stop changing the topic and answer me. Why are you here?"

"Mayank ain't coming tonight. He's crashing with Tilak. Yes, i didn't join the others for the party. And I know you and Mayank aren't dating", he raised an eyebrow as if daring me to say something.