Shadows Of The Stumps

Chapter - 145 - The One Who Stays

The sun dipped lower into the horizon, casting a golden haze over the stadium as the match day between MI and CSK buzzed with anticipation. The crowd roared, flags waved, and the energy was electric-but inside the MI dugout, a quieter moment was unfolding.

Hardik had just walked off the field after winning the toss. They'd chosen to bowl first. With a clipboard in one hand and his cap tugged low, he scanned the players and staff before his eyes landed on Meera, seated near the edge of the dugout.

She wasn't doing anything in particular-just staring at the pitch, maybe lost in thought. A soft breeze fluttered strands of her hair, and when Hardik sat down next to her, she turned with a gentle smile. No words were exchanged at first, just a silent kind of understanding. Then, slowly, he spoke.

"Funny thing," he began, his voice low beneath the stadium's roar. "Every time I walk out there, no matter how many years it's been, my heart still beats like hell."

Meera looked at him, but said nothing-she knew he needed to speak.

"I was thinking about last season," he continued. "The losses. The noise. People who once cheered now asking if we still deserve to be here. And Ro..." he paused, picking at the hem of his sleeve, "...he doesn't say much, you know him. But I know the weight he carries. Not contributing the way he used to-it breaks him, Meera. It truly does."

She leaned in just slightly, her eyes softening.

"I fear that too," he admitted. "Not being enough. Not for the team, not for the fans. Not even for myself. Sometimes I look at the scoreboard and wonder if I've lost the version of me who used to believe he could change a match in an over."

The crowd cheered something in the distance-a warmup, maybe, a familiar name flashing across the screen. But here in the dugout, time felt slower.

"And then I look at you," Hardik added quietly. "And I wonder... what do you see when you look at me? The captain trying too hard? Or just a boy still chasing the game he fell in love with?"

Meera reached out and placed her hand over his. "I see a boy who never stopped loving the game, even when it hurt him."

Hardik looked at her, his jaw tight with emotion, eyes glinting with something raw and real. "That's the only thing I want to carry on that field today. That love."

And just before he stood, he whispered, "Stay close today, Avi. If we fall, I want to fall with you here. But if we fly... I want you to see it first."

Meera squeezed Hardik's hand gently as he stood, and before he walked away toward the rest of the team, she smiled up at him, a quiet kind of strength in her voice.

"All the best, Hardik," she said, her tone soft but certain. "Go give them hell. For yourself. For Ro. For all of you."

He paused, just for a moment, and nodded-eyes meeting hers like they were anchoring him. Then he jogged back to the huddle where the rest of the team was gathering.

Rohit, looked toward Meera with that familiar big-brother frown. "And you," he called out, wagging a finger at her. "Stay away from the cameras, okay?"

Meera burst into a small laugh. "I'm not the one they want to film, bhaiya!"

Rohit smirked. "Still. You smile once at the wrong moment and the next thing I know there's an Instagram page about 'Hardik Pandya's mysterious muse'."

Meera rolled her eyes but nodded obediently, grinning. "Fine. I'll be a shadow."

Rohit gave her a mock salute and turned back to his team, calling out strategy while SKY and Tilak chuckled nearby. As the anthem blared and the teams lined up, Meera settled into her seat quietly, heart thrumming-not from nerves, but from something far deeper: