Did You Know Me? (Shubman Gill x Ishan Kishan)

Big brothers

When Ashwin and Rahul had finally forced their party to disperse citing the flight to Delhi they had the next day, Rohit was returning to his room.

Someone stumbled into him in the dark corridor.

"Ishan?"

The sound of the sob was familiar.

"Ishu," said Rohit, catching his shoulders to keep him from crumpling. "What's upset you, kiddo?"

"I hate Shubman," sobbed Ishan. "I hate Shubman."

"You guys chose today of all days for a fight?" Rohit tried not to smile. "Okay, so you've had a fight with him. So you hate him now. And you'll love him again in like two hours."

"No!" said Ishan. "I hate him, I can never talk to him again. I hate him...."

"Come on," said Rohit in a soothing way. "Let's get you to sleep, I know exactly how you're feeling."

"No, you don't!"

"You know Virat, right?" Rohit asked in amusement. "He might act like the sweetest to you guys but we couldn't go a month without fighting and saying I hate you. Whatever you guys have fallen out over, Virat and I have probably done that a million times."

Ishan laughed roughly. "Oh, I doubt you have!" he shrieked so loudly Rohit was scared he'd wake the whole hotel up.

"Okay...." Rohit led Ishan along to his room. "It's very, very late, and you're drunk and tired and upset. Come sleep."

Ishan was still sobbing as Rohit managed to get him to lie down. He had cried himself to sleep not long after. Rohit stroked his forehead and called Virat.

"There's something you need to do," said Rohit.

"I'm not getting up now," Virat said. "I have just got into bed and my head is exploding like...."

"Ishan and Shubi have had a bad fight," Rohit interrupted. "Ishan's really upset....go check on Shubi once?"

Virat, though tired as hell, did not need to be persuaded further.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Virat found Shubman sitting in his room, still like a statue. He was holding his head in his arms.

Like Rohit, Virat assumed the sort of one of their fights and noisily switched on the light. "Shubi, don't tempt fate, if you let everyday things like fights with your best friend upset you the day you've won your first World Cup, the Almighty might decide, hey, this boy isn't grateful enough, let's never give him a World Cup again!"

Shubman looked up. His eyes were bloodshot. His hair was swept to the side like he had spent a lot of time tearing at it. And his arms were covered in light bruises like they had been pinched.

Virat figured he should not have started off with a joke, because Shubman also looked quite fierce before he buried his head in his arms again.

"Um, sorry, kid." Virat went to kneel in front of Shubman and pull his hands away from his face. "Forget what I said and tell me, what happened?"

"I hurt Ishan terribly," said Shubman without much hesitation.

Virat tried and failed to imagine how anyone could have hurt Ishan today. Like....Ishan and Jaddu were everyone's heroes today, and Shubman and Ishan never fought much anyway. They were not like Rohit and Virat. They were more like....Kuldeep and Chahal, maybe.

"Bad timing," Virat said sympathetically. "What, uh, did you do?"

"Can't tell you, Virat bhai."

"What?" asked Virat in shock. "You have never used this can't tell you line with me!"

 "I've never done something so stupid, Virat bhai," said Shubman desperately, tears springing to his eyes. Virat could tell he had been holding them back a long, long time, which was why they were so red.

Though it still seemed impossible to Virat that something could have upset the pair of them so badly when they had lifted the World Cup few hours ago, it was clear Shubman was miserable. Virat rose to sit beside him and pull him in his arms. That was when Shubman finally started crying.

"Shubi-Shubi-don't worry.... you'll tell him sorry and it's going to be fine...."

"I'm horrible," Shubman sobbed. "I mess everything up and always end up hurting the people I love most, Virat bhai...."

Virat kissed Shubman's head.

"You wouldn't be my favourite kid if you didn't," he said.

Shubman laughed and then resumed crying.

"Aw, Shubi, you and I, we do mess up a lot of things but we're good at making them up, too," said Virat gently. "You didn't mean to hurt Ishan. You're so upset because you hurt him. That means you will find a way to make up to him."

"What if I don't?"

"He's your best friend. Of course you will find a way."