"Nakuul, is everything okay?"

Dragging his eyes away from his phone for a moment, Nakuul looked up to see his teammate and friend, Yuvraj Singh, looking at him with a concerned gaze.

"Um, yeah. Why do you ask?" He asked, confused. Yuvraj shrugged.

"Well, I just found it weird that you've been attached to your phone since morning, that too during practise. Matlab, usually toh we rarely ever even get to see your phone! No wonder we were so excited the other day and ended up breaking it," He joked, and Nakuul rolled his eyes. They were practising in the stadium for their match against Mumbai Indians tonight, and were currently taking  a lunch break.

"It's nothing like that," He started, not really knowing what to say. "I was just, uh, talking to this friend," He said. It was the truth, obviously. Surbhi was indeed a friend, although he would love for her to be something more..

What are you thinking, Nakuul! He chided himself. They had barely just met once, for God's sake! Wasn't it too soon for him to be getting these feelings for her? Feelings that made his heart beat increase whenever his phone vibrated at the incoming of a message, which it did right now. 

"Friend or girlfriend?" Yuvraj asked teasingly, settling himself down beside Nakuul and trying to read the message that had just arrived. Nakuul glared at him and quickly put away his phone.

"I don't have a girlfriend, alright?" He said, annoyed because he wanted to be left alone and just continue with his texting. "Now go and have your lunch, and get back to practise," He added, showing his authority as captain. Yuvraj only grinned and raised his hands in surrender, before walking away. Nakuul breathed out in relief and took back his phone, his face now lighting up in a smile. There were three messages from Surbhi already, in this span of a few seconds. It made his heart flutter.

We're having lunch break too, but my lunch
is a very boring dish of salad, courtesy my health
conscious sister -.-

You there?

You said it was lunch break, Nakuul! You know
I won't be able to talk after a while, right? -.-

Nakuul laughed at her annoyance, and quickly started typing, lest she get busy with shooting again. As it was, the both of them were extremely busy, and after good morning texts along with an apology from her at having fallen asleep in the midst of texting, they had only gotten time to talk again during their lunch breaks. Which of course, Nakuul had very strategically called so that it would clash with hers.

Hey hey, I'm here!  Actually Yuvi
came over and started annoying me so :P Anyway, you don't
like salad, eh?

Jeez, Nakuul. Who likes salad?

Um, I kinda do! I mean, it is healthy...

You should be friends with my sister and obsess over health. I don't have
time for all this 'salad' talk :)

Okay okay, no more salad talk! What would you rather we talk about?

Sending the message, Nakuul smiled to himself, a bit shyly, since he was hoping she'd get the subtle flirtacious hint he was sending, of talking about more interesting things. Running a hand through his hair, he waited for her reply.

If he was being honest, it had taken Nakuul a lot of courage to send her that first text, yesterday. Eventually he had been planning to start a conversation the day after they had met, with a 'Did you reach home safely' text, but then his very annoying teammates had somehow managed to throw his phone out the bus window while going to practise. Don't ask how, because only players knew what kind of shenanigans went on in buses and changing rooms and hotels. Anyway, so it had taken him two days to get his phone repaired, and another few hours to muster up the courage to message her. The next few hours had been some of the most anxious ones of his life, since she hadn't replied back.

But when she had, well, that had been everything.

Nakuul had always been very strict about his sleep cycle, unless of course he had to stay up all night partying with teammates. But last night, sleep had been far, far, away. He had been so smitten by the engima that was Surbhi Chandna, he could have gone the whole night just talking to her. Unfortunately though, she had fallen asleep. But she had texted him upon waking up in the morning, making it a very good start to his day. He was broken out of his reverie when his phone vibrated, and he dropped the fork he had been holding onto the plate. Having lunch was becoming very difficult what with this woman around, but he wasn't complaining.

Uhm, I don't know. You say?

Nakuul thought for a while. He really had to keep this conversation going, since it was lightening up his entire world. 

Oh, by the way, you didn't answer my question from last night?

Hitting send, he went back to finishing his lunch fast. As much as he was enjoying their text conversations, they had a game in a few hours and currently, practise was his first priority. Moreover, he could talk to Surbhi all night, right? The thought had him smiling idiotically.

Oh, that :P Um, I may or may not
have had a boyfriend...

Nakuul frowned at that. He was feeling a pang of jealousy in his chest, at the thought of Surbhi having been with some other dude. 

Come on, do share! I told you directly,didn't I?

Taking a deep breath, he stared out at the large, green field in front of him. Stadiums were no doubt his most favorite place in the world, and always gave him a sort of serenity, along with a sense of being alive, all at once. Getting up, he went to wash his hands, and then picked up his phone to text her one last time before resuming practice. She had replied, and he smiled when he saw it.

Why are you so eager to know, 
Mr.Mehta? But since you are, I'll
tell you- I never really dated. A few 'flings'
now and then, but nothing serious. Ab khush?

Bohot khush, he muttered to himself. 

Why do you think I'm eager,Miss Chandna? ;) Anyway Surbhi, as much as I'm loving our conversation, I really need to head back to practice. I'll knock you later?

Having sent that, he was about to put his phone on Do Not Disturb, before remebering something and resuming typing again.

Oh, and if you're free tonight, I'd be glad if you could watch our match.
7 PM. Who knows, you might just turn out to be my lucky charm?

With a wide grin on his face, he sent that, and ran back into the field. 

** 

"Gosh, Shivaay, you're such a cheapda! Now let me go- I need to speak with Gauri," Unlooping her arms from around Shivaay's neck, who reluctantly let go of her waist, Annika ran out of the room.

"...and cut! Good shot, guys. Break of 10 minutes before the next scene."

Breathing out deeply, Surbhi was about to move away, fanning herself with her dupatta, when Barun pulled her back by the wrist.

"What's the hurry, Chandna? Why don't we romance for a while more?" He asked, wriggling his eyebrows. Surbhi hit his arm playfully.

"Shut up, Sobti, or I'll complain to your wife!" Sticking her tongue out at him, she moved away to the sofas spread out on the set and collapsed against one, Barun laughing at her antics. After a while, Surbhi was joined by Shrenu and Mansi, her co-stars and best friends.

"Chandu, did he reply?" Shrenu asked without any preamble, her large doe-eyes rounder than usual in hope. Surbhi rolled her eyes at her.

"I told you na, he won't reply now. He said he's busy! Besides, his match starts in a while so he's probably already on the field." She said, drinking some water from a bottle. It was almost 6 pm now and having been shooting since morning, she was extremely tired. Shrenu pouted dissapointedly.

"Yeah, possibly. But when he does, make sure you tell him that I'm a HUGEEE fan!" Shrenu exclaimed, slumping back against the couch and staring up dreamily.

"Me too," Mansi chirped in, her eyes dazed as well. Surbhi grinned seeing how smitted her friends were by a certain Nakuul Mehta. She was pretty sure that if they ever met him, they'd probably have a heart attack because he was SO much more enthralling in real life.

"Haa haa, bol dungi," She said, not being able to stop from smiling seeing their state. "But why are you both so interested in him? He's mine!" 

As soon as that escaped her lips, she bit her tongue, but too late- the damage was done. Her two friends turned to her with teasing smiles.

"Possessive, huh?" Shrenu grinned, making Surbhi blush.

"Whatever," She said, trying to avoid the topic. "Now go, it's your scene next!"

"Yeah yeah, I will go," Shrenu said, getting up as their director- Lalit Mohan- was calling out to her, "but remember, the conversation isn't over!"

Surbhi rolled her eyes, and watched both her friends walk away. Picking up her phone, she sighed. He had indeed said that he would knock her late, but she was desperate to talk to him. How was it that even though they had only been texting since last night, she had gotten addicted to it? Shaking her head, she tried to clear her mind of his thoughts. As it was, people had noticed that she was distracted today, and she didn't want to appear un-focused in her work. 

After a couple of hours, shoot was finally over for the day, and Surbhi reached home all exhausted. Entering her room, she didn't even bother turning on the lights before falling onto the soft mattress of her bed. Finally closing her eyes and breathing in peace, she was almost dozing off, when her eyes suddenly opened wide.

Oh shit, Nakuul's match!

Getting up hurriedly, she dashed out into the living room, to find her dad already watching the match. To not appear suspicious, she slowed down her steps, and giving her father a small smile, she sat down next to him on the couch.

"What happened, bunny?" He asked her, wrapping an arm protectively around his youngest daughter. She snuggled into him.

"Nothing, dad. Why?" She asked. He shrugged.

"Usually you fall asleep the minute you're home. How did you think of visiting your dad today?" He asked, teasing her. She shoved at his chest.

"That's not true, I do come to you at times. And I wasn't feeling sleepy, so thought of joining you in watching the match."

Her dad stared at her for a while, before shrugging it off. She did say she had gotten an interest in cricket after going to the stadium, so maybe this was the effect of that. The father-daughter duo continued watching KXIP play against MI, and Surbhi tried not to cry out in dissappoint when Nakuul was bowled out by Mustafizur Rahman, or jump in glee when KXIP won the game by a very thin margin. It was 11 PM when she finally retired to her home, her face glowing because he had won, and also because she had gotten to stare at his gorgeous face for so long. Now that she lay on her bed again, sleep was far away because her heart was thumping at the prospect of getting his message. Half an hour passed, but nothing from him. Picking up her phone, she checked a couple of times to see if it had sufficient signal, and then opened her last message to see if she had somehow missed his text. Nope, the last message was still the one she had sent.

I don't know, you tell me why you're
so eager, Mr. Mehta? And I'll be waiting for your
text. Best of luck for the match- your good
luck charm will be watching! <3

She smiled at her own message, wondering if she should have sent a heart. He had sent a heart too, last night, hadn't he? Sighing, Surbhi covered herself with the duvet and laid on one side. He still hadn't seen her message. Wasn't he supposed to be done with his post match presentation, by now?

Yeah, but then he'll have to change, go back to the hotel, and what not! Reminding this to herself, Surbhi realized that it would probably take him a long time to message. She was very drowsy now, once again, a result of not having gotten enough sleep last night, thanks to their chatting. She tried keeping herself awake by scrolling through Instagram and Twitter, but at one point, she eyes were literally drooping shut every second. She decided to message him again, ignoring whether that appeared desperate or whatever.

Congratulations, Nakuul! I watched the match and
you guys rocked! You must be tired now, so goodnight :)

Sending that, Surbhi kept aside her phone, and fell asleep the very next moment.

**

Nakuul ignored all his teammates' pleas to join them in the bar of the hotel and have a few drinks, and rushed to his room as fast as he could. Entering, he switched on the AC, turned off the lights, and got himself comfortable on the heavenly soft bed that smelled of some expensive detergent. He had changed into a t-shirt and trousers in the changing rooms itself, so he was all set for the night. Smiling wide, both because they had won and because he could finally, finally talk to her again, he took out his phone and switched it on. Seeing her messages, he grinned even more, if that was possible. She really was a lucky charm. Typing at light speed, he sent her a message. It was 12 already, and he could only hope that she was still awake, since her last text had come about 30 minutes ago.

Thankyou, Surbhi! You are indeed lucky ;) and
it's not goodnight for me yet! Hope you're still awake?
Oh, and as for why I was so eager to know, I guess I wanted to know
if any man has been lucky enough to be with you yet? ;)

He couldn't really believe he had just sent that. This was blatant flirting, wasn't it?! And he had never done this before, but with her, everything just sort of flowed and felt right. Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair. Throughout the match, he had been wondering if she was watching, and that had been driving him crazy. In fact, he had been so embarassed when he had been clean bowled by Mustafizur Rahman after making only 10 runs! Thankfully, though, his teammates had saved the day. 

After about an hour, when Nakuul finally accepted that she had fallen asleep and that they wouldn't be having their late night convos that night, he sent her one last text before drifting into a deep sleep, himself.

Asleep again, Miss Kumbhkaran? We really need to work on
our timings, don't we? :P
Anyway, goodnight <3 talk to you tomorrow!

Indeed, these two career-oriented people would need to work hard on their timing. And the fact that they were more than willing to do so, would definitely make it all work out.

**

Hope you all liked this! I like taking a little more time with this story, try and get the details right and all, because trust me, I probably love this story more than you guys do :P

Oh, and I had to ask something- I hope no one gets confused about which text is sent by whom? Whosever POV it is- their message will be on the right side, just italicized and NOT emboldened.