Hello lovely people! Wishing you all happy holidays and a very Happy New Year! Here's a long update to end 2019 💕

There was no denying the fact that Surbhi was a lucky charm for Nakuul. With her finally around, he gave his best performance in the world cup so far, scoring a century off just 56 deliveries. His post-century celebration was obviously a kiss in her direction on the stands, which did not go unnoticed by the several media people present around. They were ready with photographs, taken from different angles, to be published on tabloids the next day. Nakuul and Surbhi did not mind—their relationship was public news and as long as the media did not get in their way too much, their public display of affection could be, well, publicized as much as the media wanted.

With the first innings over, Surbhi made her way to the players' lounge to congratulate her beau on his spectacular performance, and also give him some news from her side. She found Nakuul and Mahi, the last two players to have batted, opening their gloves and paddings. Mahi gave her a smile as he saw her, before moving inside to change. Nakuul stood up and walked towards her.

"If you want to give me a congratulatory kiss," he started, mouth tilting up in a cocky grin that Surbhi found too sexy, "the locker room should be empty right now."

Surbhi shoved his shoulders.

"The match is still not over, mister," She told him, all the while rubbing his blue jersey in appreciation. "You were spectacular, but what's the point if we don't win?"

"We will win," He told her with confidence, pulling her closer to him. "You're here, after all, my Lady Luck. But I really want some incentive to play well, you know? Like maybe the promise of a long yet passionate evening ahead..." He leaned in closer to kiss her, but Surbhi put her hand in between their mouths. Nakuul frowned.

"Baby, I wanted to tell you something. Ask you something, actually," Surbhi started, a little hesitant, which was unusual.

"What is it?" A skeptical Nakuul asked.

"Actually, Raj Baddhan called me a while back. He runs a radio station here in London, you know? I met him when he was in Mumbai and even did an interview with him."

"Okay..." Nakuul urged her to carry on.

"Well, from my Instagram, Raj came to know that I'm in London, and he wants to do another interview with me. I said no at first because I'm going back to Mumbai tomorrow itself, but he insisted. Said it will take only a couple of hours, and that given that I have quite a large fan-base in London, people will really appreciate it."

"And? What did you decide?"

Surbhi shrugged.

"Well, on one hand, I really want to spend as much time with you as possible, before my flight tomorrow, and this interview will surely come in the way of that. But..."

Nakuul raised an eyebrow.

"I also really want to do this," Surbhi let out honestly. "I mean, I don't know when I'll get to come to London again, and I wanted to do something for all my fans here while I can."

"So, did you say yes for the interview?"

"Not yet. I wanted to ask you first."

"Ask me?" Nakuul said, sounding a little offended. "Surbhi, why do you have the assumption that you need my permission to do anything?"

"I don't," Surbhi bit her lip apologetically. "But I just wanted to make sure that you don't mind that, you know, I'll have to stay away from you for a few hours, given that I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Sweetheart," Nakuul sighed, cupping her cheeks, "I'll admit, I do want to spend every second with you before you leave, but I will never want to come in between you and your work. You're doing such a fantastic job, and you deserve all the appreciation and recognition that you get. The fact that people want you to give an interview even when you're here for just a three-days' vacation clearly states how much they love you! So go and tell Raj that you'll give the interview, okay?"

Smiling, Surbhi gave Nakuul a tight hug.

"I love you," She said after pulling back. "And I'm so proud of you."

"And I'm proud of you," He replied, kissing her forehead. "Now, should I go and change? We need to go out there in another 20 minutes."

Surbhi nodded and gave him that congratulatory kiss he had been yearning for.

"Go kill it, Mr. Mehta."

--

Nakuul did, in fact, kill it, and India won by a large margin. In celebratory mood because with this win, they had secured a spot in the semis, the boys made their way to the hotel. Their other halves had joined them on the bus.

"You know," Surbhi started as she rested her head on Nakuul's shoulder, "this reminds me of the time we were all in the bus together after the IPL finale, making our way to the hotel. Do you remember?"

"How can I not?" Nakuul smiled. "I also remember that hot makeout session we had had in the locker rooms right after the team had won. Do you remember that?"

Surbhi blushed at the memory. That seemed like a lifetime ago. Come to think of it, she and Nakuul hadn't even started dating at that point.

"When is your interview scheduled for?" Nakuul asked after a while.

"7 PM," Surbhi replied. It was 5 now.

"Is it okay if I come along with you?" Nakuul asked hopefully. "I'll sit and wait outside or something."

Surbhi beamed. Could her boyfriend get any more adorable?

"Don't you want to stay back and celebrate with the boys?"

"No," He said decidedly, putting his head down on her shoulder. "I just wanna be with you." He sounded like a baby. Her baby.

"Fine. You'll get bored there, but don't blame me later, okay?"

--

Nakuul yawned as he stared at his watch for the umpteenth time in the last couple of hours. Surbhi had been right—he was bored out of his mind, sitting in the car they had been provided with by the hotel. He had watched movies, listened to songs and even tried to get some reading done, but time just wouldn't pass, not when he was impatiently waiting for his girlfriend. After what seemed like ages, she finally walked out of the studio building, alongside a bearded man he assumed was Raj Baddhan. Nakuul got out of the car.

"Hey, I'm Nakuul Mehta," He smiled and forwarded his hand for the man to shake.

"Of course, of course, who doesn't know you! I'm Raj Baddhan, nice to meet you. You played a great game today!"

Nakuul thanked him and turned to Surbhi.

"How did it go?"

"It was great! I had so much fun with Raj. He was an amazing host."

"Ah," Raj waved the compliment off with his hand. "That's only because you're such a great guest, Surbhi. I must say, Nakuul, Surbhi is quite the celebrity here in London. The interview will air tomorrow, and I just know it will garner us a great response."

After a little more chit-chatting, the couple bid bye to Raj and were off. In the car, Surbhi filled Nakuul in with all the details of the interview, telling him which questions she had liked and where she had gotten a little nervous. Nakuul listened to her patiently, brimming with joyous pride.

"Can we have dinner outside?" Surbhi asked eagerly as they entered a posh street in London that was full of fancy restaurants. "My treat."

Nakuul of course agreed, and after a delicious meal, they went back to the hotel. Surbhi started packing while Nakuul watched her from the bed. Her flight was tomorrow morning and he was definitely not ready to see her leave.

"Can't you stay just one more day?" Nakuul asked. "Please?"

"And what's the point of that? Saying goodbye is still gonna be hard," Surbhi reasoned. Nakuul sighed.

"At least I'll get to see your pretty face for a while longer," Nakuul said grumpily. Surbhi walked up to him and sat down on his lap.

"Baby, it's just a few more weeks. After that you don't have any matches scheduled outside of India for three months, na? So don't miss me so much, and instead focus on the World Cup."

Nakuul hummed and kissed her hair.

"Surbhi?" He said after a while. Surbhi looked up from where her head lay on his chest.

"What do you say to moving in together?"

The question took Surbhi by surprise. She shuffled a little to face him.

"Moving in?"

"Yeah," Nakuul shrugged. "I mean, I know it's a big step, so I'm not asking you to decide right away or anything. But just think about it. With your shoot and my practices, we barely get time to meet even when we're both in the country. Living together would just make everything so much simpler. Besides, I'm tired of living alone. And I want to share a home with you."

Surbhi was silent for a while.

"I don't know," She mumbled, leaning against him again. "It seems like such an exciting idea, but..."

"But what, baby?" Nakuul asked gently. "Are you worried your parents won't let you? I can talk to them."

"That's not my concern," Surbhi said honestly. "I know I'll be able to persuade them."

"Then?"

"Well, okay, there's two things," Surbhi started passionately. "First, if I leave, mumma and papa are going to be all alone. I mean I know it sounds stupid, but I don't know if I'm ready to leave them just yet, you know?"

Nakuul nodded, caressing her hair as she spoke.

"And secondly...I'm a little scared."

"Scared?"

"Again, it's really stupid," Surbhi bit her lip. "But the thing is, living together isn't easy, I've heard. Couples think it's gonna be all love and rainbows, but it's difficult to adjust, and it often leads to breakups."

Nakuul was silent for a second.

"That is a very stupid fear," Nakuul grinned, making Surbhi pout grumpily.

"Listen to me, love," He urged. "I understand what you're saying, but don't you think adjusting to living together is a very small issue, in the larger scheme of things? Sure, it won't be the easiest, but we have to live together someday, right? If not now, then when we get married." The mention of marriage brought a blush to Surbhi's cheeks. Nakuul continued. "Don't you think, in that case, that it's better to live together and get over that whole 'adjusting' part sooner than later?"

Surbhi nodded, still unsure and in deep thought.

"Like I said, I'm not asking you to decide right now," Nakuul said, keeping his chin on her shoulder. "But do think about it. Besides, just imagine, if we live together, I can make love to you whenever I want..."

"Is that all you ever think about?" Surbhi scrunched her nose.

"Not all the time," Nakuul replied in mock seriousness, "But yes, it does take up a considerable amount of my time."

Staring at each other, the two of them burst into laughter. And to show Surbhi just how amazing it would be if they lived together, Nakuul made love to her for a considerable amount of time that night.

--

The World Cup ended for India on the 9th of July, when they were defeated by New Zealand in the semi-finals. They were distraught, of course. India had given one of the best performances in the tournament, winning all matches but one before the semis. It took a while for everyone to cope, but eventually, they understood that they had emerged as one of the best teams. Back home, they were welcomed with great respect, despite not bringing back the cup.

Nakuul too was quite devastated for a while but returning back to Mumbai helped. Practices were infrequent and laid back now, with their next series still a month away. Nakuul made the most of this time, living with his parents, hanging out with friends, visiting the sets and watching Surbhi shoot. Whenever he went to her shoots, he never forgot to remind her how the studio was closer to his apartment than it was to her house.

"We could also buy a house that's even closer," He would casually put in. Surbhi would just shake her head and laugh. She was still 'thinking' about his suggestion.

One particular Sunday, Surbhi was sitting with her mom after breakfast, sipping tea. Her dad had gone to the market to buy fresh vegetables—a Sunday ritual.

"Mom," Surbhi started. "You remember how I told you I wanted to take Nakuul on a mini holiday some weekend, as an anniversary present?"

"Mm-hmm," Shashi Chandna nodded, eyes on the newspaper.

"Well, I was thinking, instead of just the two of us going, why I don't I take both our families on a mini-vacation?"

This got her mother's interest, and she put down the paper.

"That's an interesting idea."

"Yeah. Actually, I feel like he barely gets time to spend with family, and it's been so long since you and dad also went on a vacation. Besides, this will give some bonding time to both the families."

"And you want to sponsor this vacation?"

"I guess," Surbhi shrugged. "I mean, I earn enough to spend on one holiday."

"That's a lovely idea, baby," Surbhi's mother pinched her cheeks. "Very thoughtful of you. But are you sure about this? Don't you want to spend some time alone with Nakuul? It's an anniversary present, after all."

"Nah, it's fine. This will be more fun. Besides, Nakuul and I spent time alone in London, so we're good."

And so it was decided. Surbhi quickly got to work, looking up some nice vacation spots within India, making a budget, etc. She talked to her dad about it, and he was all for the idea. Next up, she called Pranavi and Sanjay jiju, asking them about their schedule for next week. With her own family sorted, she called Nakuul and filled him in on the plan.

"Wow," he breathed out when she finished telling him about her idea. "That's a wonderful plan."

"I know," Surbhi blew her nails with attitude. "I told you I'd gift you something for our anniversary, na? And I thought, what's better than having the people you love under one roof, right?"

"Right," Nakuul laughed. "I love you for this."

"I know, I know," Surbhi beamed. "But listen, you have to tell me everyone's schedule for next weekend so we can plan something, okay? Ask uncle, aunty, Prachi di, jiju, everyone. And also, help me come up with where we should go."

"Okay, okay, slow down," He chuckled. "What places are you considering?"

"So we have a few options. We can go to some resort near Mumbai and spend the weekend there. We can go to Goa. Or, we can go further. Maybe some hill station? It's up to you. My family is okay with everything."

"Actually, coincidentally, mom and I were just talking about Mussoorie the other day. It's been so long since any of us have gone to the mountains. So...does Mussoorie work?"

"Mussoorie is absolutely perfect," Surbhi squealed, excited already.

The next Friday, a large family of 11 people boarded the flight to Mussoorie, ready to spend a wonderful two days in the mountains.

So remember when I had said I wanted to end this story soon? I just wanted to tell y'all that I'm going to start planning for the ending. As you can see, this story isn't really going anywhere. I'm out of ideas, so I'm gonna try and wrap it up soon. Don't worry, it won't be TOO soon, because I want to reach a certain point before ending. But just wanted to let everyone know!

PS shoutout to PARIMALA020 for suggesting that I show an interview of Surbhi with Raj Baddhan!

PPS next update will probably come a little late; my brother's coming home after 1.5 years so I'll be busy, sorry!