Aditi swung her legs back and forth as she sat perched on the marble slab in the kitchen, her laughter ringing out as Shahneel recounted a story about one of Shubman's embarrassing moment. "And then, he actually tripped over his own shoelace right in front of the entire team right before his odi debut! Can you believe it?" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling mischievously.

"Typical Shubman." Aditi said, shaking her head as Shahneel stirred the pot of tea on the stove. "Always trying to act cool, but then doing something ridiculous. Do you remember when he thought he could fix the TV himself and ended up short-circuiting the whole house?"

Aditi nearly choked on her laughter. "Yes! Atharva bhaiya still calls him 'Electric Boy' every time he wants to annoy him."

The sisters shared a conspiratorial grin, perfectly in sync as they roasted their brothers. The kitchen was warm with the scent of freshly brewed chai and the cozy sounds of gossip—just the kind of morning Aditi loved.

As Shahneel poured the tea into two cups, Kiara's mum, Aditi's Badi Maa, entered the kitchen. Her gaze lingered on Aditi, a knowing look on her face. "Aditi, what are you still doing here?" she asked, folding her arms. "You're supposed to be getting ready to go out."

Aditi frowned. "Go out? Where to?"

Badi Maa sighed. "You have to take Shubman to get his sherwani. It's tradition for the bride's family to help the groom get his wedding attire, and we've already picked Kiara's lehenga. The sherwani is the only thing left."

Aditi's nose scrunched up at the idea. "Why me? Shahneel di can go, or he can just go with his friends. It's not like he's a kid who needs me holding his hand while he picks out a sherwani."

Badi Maa gave her a pointed look. "Shubman's family will expect it. It's our responsibility to make sure everything is perfect for the wedding, including his sherwani."

Aditi groaned, throwing her head back dramatically. "Fine. But don't blame me if I end up strangling him with a dupatta."

Shahneel chuckled as she sipped her tea. "You'll survive. Who knows, maybe you two won't kill each other this time."

With a reluctant sigh, Aditi hopped off the counter and made her way outside, where Shubman was lounging with Ishan.

"Here to admit you can't stay away from me?" Ishan quipped as Aditi approached.

She rolled her eyes. "Get over yourself, Ishan. I'm here because Badi Maa says "jiju" needs to get his sherwani, and apparently, I'm the lucky one who gets to take him."

Shubman let out an exaggerated groan. "Out of all the people in your family, it had to be you? Also, stop calling me jiju."

"Yeah, well, I'm not thrilled about it either." she shot back, reaching over to tug on a strand of his hair.

"Ow! What's wrong with you?" Shubman rubbed the back of his head as she started walking toward the car. "Gadhi."

"Stop whining and move it." she called over her shoulder, and Ishan's laughter echoed behind them as Shubman reluctantly grabbed the car keys and followed her out.

The car ride was nothing short of tense. As they pulled out of the driveway, Aditi leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms. "Don't you dare think of playing that obnoxious rap music." she warned.

Shubman smirked, reaching for the stereo. "You mean the music that has actual rhythm? Unlike that sappy stuff you listen to?"

"Actual rhythm? Please. If I wanted to hear someone mumble about cars and money, I'd ask Atharva to read me his shopping list." Aditi retorted.

He scoffed but gave in, switching the stereo to a neutral FM station. "Happy?"

"Ecstatic." she replied dryly.

The remaining of the drive was filled with light bickering, interrupted by bouts of silence when they could no longer think of new ways to insult each other's taste in music, movies, or just about anything else. By the time they reached the store, Aditi felt slightly less irritated, but still made it a point to walk a step ahead of Shubman, just to make sure he knew she was still annoyed.

The sherwani shopping was surprisingly swift. Shubman tried on a few options, dismissing half of them immediately for being too "flashy," while Aditi helped him settle on a classic ivory sherwani with intricate gold embroidery that she begrudgingly admitted looked quite regal on him.

On their way back, the car was once again filled with the same mix of uneasy silence and occasional jabs, until Aditi's eyes suddenly lit up. "Stop the car!"

Shubman startled, glancing at her in alarm. "What? Why?"

"There!" She pointed to a roadside tea stall, the kind with a tin roof and plastic stools scattered around. "Pull over."

He shook his head, his voice filled with exasperation. "We're going to be late. Do you really want to waste time here?"

"It's not a waste of time if I say it's not." she declared, already unbuckling her seatbelt. "Come on."

She practically dragged him out of the car, ignoring his protests. Once they ordered two cups of chai and a steaming plate of Maggi, Shubman finally gave up the act and allowed a faint smile to form.

"Remember when we used to play hide and seek at Dada's old garage?" Aditi said, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled in. "You were always so bad at finding us."

Shubman chuckled, stirring his tea. "That's because you were a cheater. You and Shahneel di always hid in the most impossible spots. Like that time you disappeared for what felt like hours."

Aditi grinned, her eyes twinkling with mischief. "Oh, that day! Tum sab ko laga main kidnap hogayi thi. Bhaiya even started crying, thinking Baba was going to kill him for losing his little sister."

"You were nowhere to be found," Shubman agreed, his tone becoming more animated. "I found Shahneel behind the stack of tires, but you... you were just gone. Hame to laga tu kahi mar gayi."

She laughed, remembering the sheer chaos of that afternoon. "I was under the old Ambassador car. Right there, in the garage the whole time, while you lot were running around like headless chickens."

Shubman rolled his eyes. "And then you grabbed my foot out of nowhere. We all screamed like we'd seen a ghost."

"Your face was priceless." Aditi said, her laughter ringing out again. "You looked like you were about to faint."

He shook his head, the memory warming something inside him despite himself. "You were such a brat, you still are." he said, though there was no bite to his words.

"Thankyou for the compliment." she replied, giving him a cheeky smile before taking a sip of her chai.

They sat there for a few minutes longer, talking about old pranks and childhood squabbles, and for a moment, it almost felt like they were friends again. But as they returned to the car and resumed their journey, the playful banter resumed, with Aditi criticizing his parking skills and Shubman calling her the backseat driver from hell.

As the resort came into view, Shubman glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She was fiddling with the radio, a little smile still playing on her lips from their tea break. He wouldn't admit it, but the outing hadn't been as terrible as he'd expected.

"She's not that bad to be around." he thought, then quickly dismissed the idea. "But I'd still never choose to be stuck with her."

And with that, he pulled the car to a stop, wondering if, for just a moment, Aditi had thought the same.