"It was a mistake bringing you here." Kiyansh murmurs and stubbornly holds my arms as if he is keeping me astute from running to the interview panel in the field where Vikrant is giving his man of the match review.

I control my feet and try not to jump when after ten minutes we are standing in the middle of the ground and Vikrant is half jogging towards us. I can see from the corner of my eyes Kritika stretching her neck behind me to look at Vikrant with wide eyes and Ayan rolling his eyes, like minutes before he wasn't the one who wanted to meet him. At least I am not the only one to ogle at him awkwardly.

Vikrant's jersey sticks to his body, it makes him looks overtly sexy, his muscles clearly visible, he is as tall as Kiyansh and I guess even more but I can't help but be covertly proud of Kiyansh for having a body as ripped and muscly as a cricketer. The thought takes me to the past night, and it goes to that place where at some point I could feel Kiyansh's muscle under my hand, only if for a second, and the thought sends my brain completely to the person beside me, to the point where his arms are touching mine.

In that moment I know, no matter how much I try, I compare every man to him. I have been, since childhood. And honestly, it scares me.

Vikrant stops in front of us and grins at Kiyansh, "Thank you for coming today man. How was the game? "

"The best like always." Kiyansh nods his head in approval, which is to say, it's a big reaction coming from him.

Suddenly Vikrant turns towards me and he looks from Kiyansh to me, his brows up, a grin taking placing on his face. "Is she who I think she is?" He wiggles his brow at Kiyansh.

For a second I freeze and think he took me wrong for Sahana. Maybe Kiyansh mentioned about Sahana before and he thinks I am Sahana, but I warily watch Kiyansh nodding his head and Vikrant literally jumps at me. I stagger back in surprise so hard I bump into Reyansh and Kritika.

Vikrant doesn't take notice and continues to grin at me, his eyes fixated on mine, "Oh man! So you are finally here." He rubs his hand as if he is preparing for a race, then folds two fingers in his mouth and whistles so hard that half of the Indian cricket team's head turns in our direction. Their gazes so powerful that I feel myself blush.

Kiyansh scowls at Vikrant and steps close to me.

"Hey Rathi! " he waves his hand at the bowler who took five wickets today and also the last memorable one.

The bowler grins and starts to make his way towards us, patting on the back of an Australian cricketer on the way.

"Hello Singhania!" the bowler, Rathi chews a gum and grins at Kiyansh shaking his hand, he has that cute look on his face right now, on the ground he looked like a lethal python who was ready to hiss on anyone coming his way.

"Rathi, that is her." Vikrant points to me exaggerating her, as if I am some museum architecture they have been planning to see.

Rathi's head whip so fast towards me that I wonder is it because they have such flexible bodies that they don't break it. He tilts his head and grins at me, "Woah. Now I can understand why boss kept continuously asking her to come to the finals at the IPL."

How do they know about that?

"Shut up both of you." Kiyansh growls beside me like a lion.

They both ignore Kiyansh, and crowd towards me. "You wouldn't even know how many times this year at the IPL team meeting he said to us Shanvi is gonna come to the finals, and then his face turned like this," Vikrant says and mockingly turns his lips downward imitating Kiyansh, "when he told us that you couldn't come because you had to go to Europe for a shoot. He looked so crestfallen I can't even tell you. We were all so excited to meet you."

I look at Kiyansh and his eyes completely evade mine. I feel so happy that I can't help but grin back at them.

Rathi nods his head sagely, "Would you come for IPL next year? He will be on cloud nine." He motions to Kiyansh and looks so hopeful it's almost adorable.

"You will be able to ask her to come next year" Kiyansh says in caveat, "if you would be staying on the team."

Vikrant and Rathi step back so fast, I laugh.

"We were just kidding." Rathi raises his hand defensively, and at the same time Vikrant asks, "Did you like the match?" and then they shake their heads and grin at each other. I have a suspicion that they are best friends.

Rathi tilts his neck and looks behind me, his eyes scintillate and he whistles, "Who is that?"

I turn and find Kritika blushing from head to toe.

My father beside her looks like he is at a show and just waiting for a tub of popcorn.

"Okay get yourselves together." Kiyansh says still glaring at them.

"I just need an autograph on my jersey" Dad exclaims keenly, Vikrant and Rathi grin at dad and say "Sure," at the same time.

Rathi chews his gum and shakes his head at Vikrant, "Sick dude." Then he beams at Kritika and asks, "Do you want someone's autograph?"

And Kritika blushes from head to toe.

*****

After an hour of humdrum around with players, everyone got out from the stadium.

I was teasing Kritika about giving her phone number to Rathi, when Ayan turns and asks me, "So...are we meeting again? You owe me a glass of coffee remember?"

Kiyansh's ear perks up and he stops walking with my dad and turns towards us, his eyes burning into mine.

I look at Ayan. "Of course, just give me a call."

"Well we'll leave then." Ayan says smiling at me before shaking hands with dad and waiting for Kiyansh.

Veer opens the car door then turns and throws a small chocolate wrapped in a foil in my direction. I catch it and wink back at him, laughing, waving Aditya and Reyansh bye.

Kritika wraps me in a hug and gushes in my ear, "Sorry for staring at your boyfriend earlier, I couldn't help it. He looks like he wants to eat you, you know."

"What?" I laugh awkwardly, the blood rushes from my chest to my face. "He is not my boyfriend." I say and my eyes reflexively move towards Kiyansh.

Kritika finds me looking at him and scoffs. 'You are lying.'

And before I can say anything else, she storms off towards Ayan and his friends.

"Well I will be going to the hotel for some time I have already called the driver. See you Kiddos." My dad opens his arms and I hug him hard. "Thank you kiddo for coming at the house today, I know it was hard for you. I love you."

I close my eyes and relish in his hug, there are times when my dad acknowledges the problems between me and my mother, "I love you too dad. Come to my place whenever you want to okay?"

He smiles and kisses me on the forehead. "Okay, bye kiddo."

"Bye dad."

He shakes Kiyansh's hand, and I am sure there's some unspeakable communication passing between both of them.

Dad nods his head as if satisfied and goes in the car that drives away from the parking lot.

This time it's my turn to tease."So you missed me that much huh? On the phone you were like I don't even need you in the finale you don't even know anything about cricket."

Kiyansh stands tall and proud but his face turns a little red.

"Oh my god, you are blushing." Before he could process what I was doing, I take my phone out and click a picture of him promptly.

"Hey!" He says and tries to snatch the phone from my hand,

I laugh and keep the phone in my pocket.

His hand stops mid air and he looks me in the eye, his eyes turn serious, so serious that I can feel the air rattle in my chest. "You know they were right."

I inhale sharply, his words hitting me like a blow.

"I did hope that you would come to at least one of the matches," he says, "I wanted you to. But as always you didn't, you had excuses." His words have an edge to it, like it's taking something from him when he says it.

Words throttle in my chest with a deep ache.

He is right, I was making excuses because I didn't think I could bear it if he were to take me with Sahana to the match, even though he never took her to any of the match, I always thought he was asking me because he wanted to take her with me so the rumours wouldn't spread. I couldn't bear to become a woman third wheeling between him and his girlfriend.

I don't know how to tell him all that.

Kiyansh nods his head as if he understands but the way he storms towards the car and opens the passenger door for me without looking at me, says something else. I take a deep breath, wait a minute and follow him inside the car.