Batten down the hatches

It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye - Part 2

8 - It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye - Part 2

"It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye. Then it's fun and games you can't see anymore." — James Hetfield

POV - Rohit

A/N - Continued from the last part...

The Wellerman song was oddly soothing, specifically at the volume it was playing and I felt myself floating in and out of consciousness. It was such a sublime feeling; a sense of detachment with a sprinkle of illogical humor thrown into the mix.

I cuddled down into the redundantly opulent yet comfortable sofa and my mind kept moving through the trenches of sleep; I was too tired to bother to lie down. It was not just physical exhaustion; it was a mental lacuna.

Ignorance is the absence of knowledge and stupidity is the refusal to acquire or accept it; I am getting reminded of random quotes and it felt nice to equate myself with them. Or maybe I am dreaming.

Jaddu was talking about sentiment; it is dreamland. Without doubt. I was fully confident that I would wake up to a scene out of Disneyland or maybe in the world of Frozen. Maybe I would meet Peppa Pig. Yeah, the side effects of having a 2-year-old.

"George! You are doing it ALL wrong!"

I barely controlled my giggles as the remembered words danced a tango; I could imagine them holding hands and taking a spin around the room. I will have to remember to use the words for Virat,

"Virat! You are doing it ALL wrong!"

It has a nice ring to it. For now, that moronic Kohli was chattering with Jaddu, being particularly loquacious. Ahh, I still remembered that chubby wide-eyed little boy who had flounced into the Indian Cricket Team and he was so different from this somewhat serious and mostly lost man.

The kid Virat was something. He shouted, danced around, made a fool of himself more often than not, and yet, just one snide comment and he would go back to trudging the edge of the group. He grew uncomfortable very fast and from there streamed his utter love for their Mahi Bhai.

MS had an uncanny way of feeling out youngsters feeling isolated and he would find Virat, every single time. He would find him, fling his arm around the kid, and bring him back into the fold. And the child Virat would light up. And nobody minded because MS did it for everyone. He did it for me too. But with Virat, and sometimes with Jaddu too, Bhaiya's sixth sense worked a little faster.

"What is so funny, Jaddu?"

Bhaiya was back and I tried to sit up. Sleepiness would not do now. Though nap time is my Happy Hour and all, it would not do to miss even a moment of Mahi Bhai's presence.

"What were you doing out there, Mahi Bhai? Planning a world takeover?"

Trust Jaddu to come up with the most absurd things, though they often made astute sense. And bhaiya's face resembled a blank canvas though his eyes spoke of something different altogether.

"Making sure that the world did not know of your arrival at Ranchi by tonight!"

"Oh."

And my feeling was as vacant as Virat's reaction; we had not given a thought about things getting back to the press in the same fashion as it had gone back to Bhaiya.

"Yes, Mr. Kohli; you should have thought things over, Mr. Skipper, and why in god's good name are you standing with that ankle?"

Giving up on faking sleep, I sat up and had the pleasure of seeing Bhaiya whack Virat; it never grew old or superfluous. And finally, it struck me; Mahi Bhai had announced his retirement and there would be precious few moments I would get to spend with him and the team. If I needed to complain about Virat, I would need to call him and he would have to receive that. And only rarely would I get to see him hit Virat or pull that kid out of his funk. Or stop Jaddu from going too far with a prank. Or rein in Harry.