7 days

February 2024

POV: Shubman Gill

‘ Ibrahim…’

‘ Hmm?’

‘ can you make kheer for me?’

‘ I suppose…’

‘ Is that a yes or a no?’

‘ it's a yes, sir’

Shubman smiled as he stretched in the car seat and looked at the traffic. Everyone wanted to go somewhere as soon as they could, but somehow they were all stuck. Shubman watched as a woman rested his head on a man's shoulder as they sat on the bike. Someone held their sleeping child close to them as they rested their head against the car window.

He had missed this, for the past one year he has been traveling non stop for tournaments and other work commitments. No one had thought that Shubman would recover,  all he did was lie in bed, surrounded by all of Ishaan's memories, his photos, his gifts, his clothes. All Shubman wanted to do was cry his heart out, and fly to wherever Ishaan was and beg him to take him back, but he knew that it wasn't meant to be. If he goes back to Ishaan, it's just a matter of a few moments before he would say something to hurt Ishaan, and he would rather swallow his own tongue than hurt the love of his life.

It took everything from everyone in his life, to bring Shubman back to reality. His friends and teammates would visit him regularly to spend time with him. Mahi and Ibrahim took a few days off and dragged Shubman on a mini vacation to Kashmir. Virat, Rohit and Sachin would come home and spend hours talking to Shubman about cricket so he would get inspired to get back on the field. His family prayed for him regularly, spending every moment beside him, helping in any way they could to make him smile again.

Shubman was now made up of all the little pieces his loved ones had given him, except for his heart and soul, which was still tangled with ishaan.

Shubman turned his attention back to the song which Ibrahim was playing.

Ehsaan tera hoga mujh par
Dil chahta hai woh kehne do..

‘ibrahim…do you…do you miss her?’

Shubman watched as Ibrahim's grip tightened around the steering wheel.

‘ You miss people that you forget, I…I haven't forgotten about her….not even for a second’

‘ I don't get it ..why did you have to let her go so soon? you could have spent some more time together….’

Ibrahim smiled and looked at Shubman who was unconsciously playing with the silver rings on his hands. Silver rings, which he never took off.

‘ the longer I had stayed with her, the more it would have hurt. I didn't want to hurt your sister…’

Shubman nodded and looked outside again, closing his eyes listening to the rest of the song.

Yeh dard-e-mohabbat sehne do
Mujhe tumse mohabbat ho gayi hai

Ibrahim rested his head against the window and waited for the traffic to move. His mind went back to the last moments he had spent with Simran.

It was a stormy night, raining so heavily nothing was visible to the eyes. Thunder and lightning struck every other minute startling anyone who was awake that late. Ibrahim and Simran were drenched and taking shelter in a gazebo, waiting for the rain to die down.

‘ Simran, why didn't you take some men with you when you went out?’ Ibrahim yelled over the sound of the rain.

‘ So I could talk to you!’ Simran yelled back.