Silent Downfall

Chapter Fifteen

The ground beneath Shranav patiently bore the misery the batsman was inflicting on it; keeping pace with the growing impatience of his left foot, the marks on his forehead grew deeper. The smooth, tempting carrot in his grip, which had stolen a number of curious glances on the way, was offered yet another moderate squeeze.

After a protracted period of waiting, the door finally opened on the right side of the frame to reveal a young man. Although his light-brown face held a visible impression of consternation, he was far from being astonished. Following the series of mysterious glares that he was offered by the batsman throughout the practice session, a private conversation was the least he could expect.

"Sorry," said Reet. "I was in the washroom."

Shranav rolled his eyes. "So, if you are done by any chance, may I come in, sir?"

Reet uttered yet another word of apology in haste as he awkwardly stepped back to clear the entrance. As the older guy walked in, he closed the door and turned back with anxiety and curiosity holding fast to his limbs.

"I'll get straight to business," Shranav said with his cold eyes locked on the kid. "What's going on between you and that—I mean Waseef?"

Reet gasped. "What? Who?"

"Waseef Ibrahim. The captain of—"

"I know who he is." The lad cut him off, wishing his reply would not be deemed impertinent.

"Wonderful. Now tell me. What's up with you two?"

The silence from the other side was not welcomed by the batsman. He raised the carrot in his hand in a rather threatening manner as he carried on. "Either you speak up like a good boy or your throat will soon have an Adam's carrot instead."

If Reet had not been on the receiving end of the admonition, it would have elicited a chuckle from him. He guided his vision to his feet before offering a soft reply. "I don't know."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know anything." Although Reet knew that redundancy was a bad idea, he indeed did not know what else to say.

"He talked to you several hours before the last match, didn't he?"

The young man knew it was pointless to deny the truth. "Yes, he did."

Shranav's silence was an obvious signal demanding continuation. Reet, however, refused to add to the confession. A fair portion of him was clearly toiling to hold back his body from shuddering.

Surprisingly, the batsman's expression softened as he walked closer to him. "Look, kid, you have no reason to be afraid if you have not deliberately dived into any fishy business. Just tell me what you know about him and his intentions."

The color on Reet's face was partially restored as he once again placed his eyes on Shranav. He briefly studied his expression before looking away. "What he did... I mean... during the match... when he—"

"He? He what? Tell me, Reet. Tell me!"

"It was not real."

"What?"

"The incident was planned beforehand. He only pretended to misbehave with me. But... but... believe me, I have absolutely nothing to do with it."

"He just came and told me what he was going to do," he added, "and... and asked me not to be scared. I was supposed to stay silent about it. The unusual request or instruction, or whatever it was, puzzled me. Before I could figure out what to say, he walked away. I thought it was some kind of joke, but when he really ended up doing that, I did not know how to react."