After all this time

The dreams and the nightmares

Seeing his wife lying on the hospital bed like an invalid broke Virat's heart all over again, but he was still so glad he could be with her.

"What's up, Nushkie?" he asked, forcing himself to sound cheerful as he settled down on the chair beside her bed.

"Nothing much, just a bit boring without you," said Anushka. "How was your visit? Whom did you meet?"

"Jinks, of course," said Virat. "And... Rohit too."

Anushka opened her mouth to say something since Virat looked so stormy as he said Rohit's name, but Virat went on quickly, "But I didn't get to meet Mahi bhai--he's in Kolkata with the team...it wasn't possible."

Anushka saw how much Virat longed to meet Mahi bhai, and after he went away that night, she called Mahi.

Because she knew that Mahi bhai would go to hell and back for his Cheeku, and what was London compared to that?

___________

Two days later, when Virat was sitting beside a sleeping Anushka in the afternoon, he suddenly heard a familiar shriek of, "Virat chachu!" from behind him.

He whirled around and registered a small creature throwing itself at him.

"Zivi!" he managed to say as he lifted her to and Ziva hugged her stranglingly with surprising strength. "Is papa here?"

Virat looked all around over Ziva's head, and finally found what he was looking for, and he ran to Mahi bhai and for once put down Ziva, saying, "One second, Zivi." and hugged Mahi bhai harder that ever before.

"Did you suppose I'll not come, Cheeku?" asked Mahi bhai indulgently as Virat snuggled into him with an air that he'll never let go.

"What about your national duties?"

"If you talk about duties, don't you think my little brother is my first priority? Well over the team I coach?"

"I hoped so!" said Virat, suddenly realising that he was laughing--Mahi bhai holding him was such a dream-like situation he had craved for months--and he was finally here--and he felt like all the burdens and worries had simply disappeared.

Sakshi was standing beside them, rubbing his back comfortingly, and Ziva was tugging at his arm, whining, "Virat chachu! Virat chachu!", so Virat had to finally leave the warmth of Mahi bhai's arms and turn his attention back to his niece.

Anushka woke up at all the noise, and knew straightaway that she had done the right thing, because Virat looked happier than he had ever since she got admitted to the hospital.

Ziva went over to hug Anushka, too, saying straight from the heart, "You will get well soon, Anu chachi," and Anushka smiled and said, "Of course I will, darling. How's school?"

"I had a test this week, but papa let me miss it," she said gleefully.

"Wasn't that nice of him," said Anushka, her eyes twinkling.

Virat was sitting pressed against Mahi bhai on the bench, and whispered to him, "Did you really let her miss a test so that you all could come, Mahi bhai?"

Mahi bhai ruffled his hair and said, "Are you trying to thank me, Cheeku? Because if you are..."

He sounded so threatening that Virat hastened to say, "No, of course not! I knew you'd come!"