ephemeral

sorting out the mess

some day, some month, in 2022.

5:24 pm.

after a long day of practice and team meetings, kasturie, ishan, and shubman found themselves back in kasturie's hotel room. the atmosphere was relaxed, filled with light-hearted banter and laughter.

"yaar, practice was intense today. kal ka match bhi tough hoga," ishan said, stretching out on the bed.

"bilkul. we need to stay focused," shubman agreed, leaning back in his chair.

kasturie headed to the bathroom to freshen up. as she looked around, she spotted a spherical-shaped soap bar that looked remarkably like a cricket ball. an idea struck her, and she couldn't resist the urge to have some fun. "guys, yeh deko merko kya mila! yeh ek ball jaisa nhi dikhta?"

ishan and shubman turned to see kasturie holding the soap bar, curiosity piqued. "hmm, it does. thoda shiny ball jaisa lag raha hai," ishan noted, eyeing the soap.

her eyes lit up with mischief, and she got an idea. "let's play cricket with this! ishan, you bowl, and batting meri. come on, it'll be fun!" she jumped.

"seriously? yeh sabun hai, ball nahi," shubman replied, skeptical but amused.

"arre, thoda masti karne mein kya problem hai? come on, ishan, you in?" she urged, grinning.

ishan grinned back, always up for some fun. "main tayaar hoon. shubi, tu umpire ban ja."

shubman shook his head, laughing at their antics, but agreed to be the umpire. "fine, but agar kuch toot gaya toh tum dono responsible ho."

kasturie quickly set up a makeshift wicket using her shampoo bottle and other toiletries. she handed the soap bar to ishan, who took his position, and she picked up her bat. "ready, kasturie?" ishan called out.

"always ready!" she responded, brimming with excitement.

ishan ran up and bowled the soap bar with a playful overarm action. kasturie swung the bat with surprising accuracy, connecting with the soap bar perfectly. the soap bar shot off, heading straight for the glass window.

"oh fuck, kastuu!" shubman laughed, realizing what was about to happen.

before they could react, the soap bar crashed into the window, shattering the glass into pieces. they all froze, staring at the broken window in shock. "fuck fuck fuck... merko laga nhi tha yeh tut jayega!" kasturie exclaimed, her eyes wide.

ishan burst out laughing, clutching his stomach. "yeh toh epic tha! but ab kya hoga?"

shubman shook his head, trying to suppress his laughter. "bhai tutega nhi toh kya phool banke barsega? well, looks like we're in trouble. tumhe cleaning staff ko bulana padega."

kasturie sighed, but couldn't help but join in the laughter. "i guess i'll call the front desk. but merko mazaa aya!"

they quickly cleaned up the mess as best as they could before kasturie called the front desk to report the broken window. "hello, how can i assist you?" the receptionist answered.

"hi, um, there's been a small accident. the window in my room is broken," kasturie said, trying to sound casual.

"oh, i see. we'll send someone up right away to take care of it," the receptionist replied.

as they waited for the maintenance team, rohit sharma walked into the room, his eyes widening at the sight of the broken window. "yeh kya hua? tum logo ne kya kar diya?"

"um, hum log thoda cricket khel rahe the... and the soap bar hit the window," kasturie explained sheepishly.

rohit sighed, rubbing his temples. "seriously? tum logon ko itna bhi akkal nahi hai? what if someone got hurt? kya baccho jaisi harkate karte rehte ho."