A Tumbler Full of Tales - ICT and beyond (ON HOLD)

Accepting disappointment - The Third Part [Ft. Rohirat]

Accepting disappointment - The Third Part (A slightly different take) [Ft. Rohirat]

A/N - Do not take it too seriously, because I have twirled the characterizations a tad bit. I respect MS Dhoni so much but I wanted to explore his 'human' side a little bit. If it hurts sentiments, then I am truly sorry. It is in the format of the "One Sacked Captain format but with some differences.)

Will look forward to hearing from all of you.

Grief. Grief was watching your friend spend sleepless nights, impulsively scrolling through social media, absorbing all the negativity and yet rising up to join the team for breakfast, dredging out laughter and infinite patience for the kids.

Grief was watching your Bhaiya, your mentor, breaking down hard and the only thing you can do was to sit outside his door, keeping the others away and trying to absorb the sounds of his barely suppressed sobs.

Grief was being informed that he would no longer be captaining the franchise he had given his sweat, pain and blood for.

Grief was losing the World Cup by a whisker and knowing that you only had yourself to blame. That you could never do what MS Dhoni had done and what his Bhaiya had tried hard to teach them.

He had ridden the waves of his grief and had finally, only barely, made peace with his shortcomings.

And then there was grief from enduring a throbbing headache after having stupidly drunk in excess when the last glass of drink he remembered having was around six years back. Though there was that one time in 2019...

"Hey. Feeling better?"

A mug crept into his vision and Rohit greedily reached out for it. It was not really for the sustenance but more for the comfort it would give.

"Adrak Chai." With a deep sip, Rohit smacked his lip and savored the gingery sweet taste for a moment. "And with sugar. I am impressed, Virat."

"Anything for my Captain; of course."

Rohit held back his laughter and directed a glare at the younger player. "Stop teasing me!"

Virat sat next to him and Rohit leaned against the offered shoulder. With each sip of the tea, the headache eased out bit by little bit and it soon reduced to a lingering echo of itself.

Not too bad.

Virat was looking out at the open skies, his eyes tracing the skyline of the city as it woke up with the sunrise. Rohit stifled a yawn against the back of his hand and stretched out the kinks from his sleep-leaded arms; his shoulders did not take kindly to having slept the night away on the sofa.

"I tried to drag you to your bed, but you wouldn't listen to me." Virat was looking over, looking surprisingly compassionate; Rohit was expecting to be chewed out for drinking and for being an unfit sloth.

"That sounded the slightest bit scandalous; dragging your Captain to bed and all." Rohit grinned, and then chuckled; his mind was pretty muddled with not much getting filtered.

True to expectations, Virat was looking at him with his face sporting a ridiculous mixture of exasperation and umbrage. "Still inebriated? Or did you down a couple early in the morning?" He looked properly suspicious by now.

"Of course not, idiot! I am just....just trying to be funny."

"Why try to be something you are not?"

"I am plenty humorous, I will have you know." Rohit crossed his arms across his chest, only barely remembering to keep his teacup steady.