Sandcastles | A Virat Kohli Fanfiction

03 • the ice cream

Virat's POV

"Stop!" Kavya exclaimed in sheer excitement as we drove along the Willow Strands beach which, according to her, was the most peaceful location on the planet.

"Stop!" she repeated.

She had an aura of her kind that predisposed anyone to support her every endeavour and so I couldn't help but stop.

Before I could ask her what happened, she turned her bicycle right towards a little ice-cream caravan which was so well-covered with a pair of palm trees that someone like me could never have spotted it on his own.

I followed her. And perhaps, I would better admit that never before had I seen a vintage ice-cream van like that!

I caught this feeling of having discovered an oasis amidst a desert, which was wonderful. And for a moment, I wondered if Kavya felt the same. But only for a moment.
Because the very next minute an elderly stout woman appeared up the van and greeted us "good evening" and then I started wondering if she would recognise me any instance.
Thankfully, she did not.

"Which flavour?" Kavya asked me immediately.

"Um, I haven't had chocolate lately. So anything made of chocolate, I guess?"

"Okay." She turned to the lady and said, "A chocolate cone for him and a you-know-what for me."

They both exchanged smiles and soon, I added to my little knowledge that you-know-what meant red velvet ice-cream.

We parked our cycles under one of the palms and set out for a walk along the shore, barefoot.

There was absolute silence until I initiated a conversation.
"So you come here often?"

"Depends," she answered licking her red velvet.
"Very few people know about this beautiful place or maybe, it's beautiful because very few people know about it."

And I wanted to add, "or maybe only beautiful people (like you!) know about this place" but I preferred keeping quiet and let her do the talking
because 1) I was a bad speaker 2) I couldn't think of interesting subjects to converse about 3) I was sure anything I say would sound like a press-conference speech and most importantly 4) I loved listening to her.

"It's quite hard to get here," she continued. "And people prefer easy things. So no one usually comes here except a few kids from the far neighbourhood - and me, of course."
We chuckled and had a bite from our respective cones.

"Like, when the world and life throw questions at me, I come here in the hope of answers. And suddenly, those questions seem nothing in comparison to the vastness of the sea and softness of the sand. Then, the version of myself that leaves, is always wiser than the one that I came with."

"I like the way you think." I told her aloud when I actually just wanted to say it in my mind.

"This will be the best compliment I've ever received, sir."

"I'll take it back if you don't call me Virat!"

"Okay, okay. Can't return it, Virat."

We laughed our hearts out for two whole minutes and when she stopped, I looked at her and then we laughed again.

Quietness followed the laughter and we chose to concentrate on the ice-cream.

"Kavya." I said, breaking the silence.

"Hmm?"

"Kavya. It means poetry, doesn't it?"

"Yes. But I think I don't suit the name."

"Dare you say that!" I spoke in a bit higher tone.

"You are exactly like poetry. You express the most random thing with such an ease, grace and simplicity that it doesn't remain random anymore. You are less words and more meaning. And you know, everyone interprets you differently, the way which they find the most convenient. In reality, no one can truly explain a poem. It is ten different things to ten different people, and for me - "

"Bas, bas!" she cut me off.
"I appreciate your way of complimenting but I can't take all of it in one go or I'll bloat with pride!"

She sat down on the cold sand and I joined her.
The horizon shone in front of us and painted the sky with all its gorgeous colours. We both knew the sunset was exceptionally marvellous but we said nothing.

I could feel my face reflecting the orange of the sky. I looked at Kavya. Her golden face looked brighter in the dusklight. Her eyes - fierce emeralds - glittered with the ocean's sparkle.

And in that moment, I sensed something inside my ribs. Inside my heart. I could feel it melting. For her.

"It's melting." Kavya said all of a sudden.

"Huh?!" I asked, perplexed.

"Your ice-cream. It's melting."