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gulab jamun & ice cream



Chapter twenty-four: Gulab jamun & ice cream

As the hour and minute hand both landed on 6, Shubman's eyes opened, just like every other day. Sunlight peeked in from the small gap in her curtains, illuminating the room. The sound of morning hawkers and school vans and buses was vaguely heard. As Shubman opened his eyes properly, his lips immediately curved in a smile, seeing the person beside him. Their legs entangled and Sara's hair was bunched up on his shoulder. Everything was perfect, wasn't it?

Except it wasn't. Memories of the previous night came crashing onto him, casting a dark shadow on his momentary joy. If he could, he would get up, and have a chit-chat with Sara's maasi himself, but he couldn't. That would upset Sara and Sachin uncle both. He sighed, pulling her closer and closing his eyes, wanting to sleep just a little more than everyday.

"How are you not already drinking that horrible plain milk you drink every day?" Sara mumbled, wrapping her arm around him.

"I'm feeling a little lazy today," he mumbled back.

"Hmm, so the Sara virus reached you already?" She giggled softly.

"Hundred per cent infected," he said.

"I like your morning voice," she said. "It's so deep and husky,"

"Damn, thank you Miss Gupte for the compliment," he chuckled. "Oh by the way," he added.

"Hm?"

"You remember when you said that I can take you out on a second date? That's today," he said.

"Shub, but I have,"

"Yeah no, I told Krishna that you're not feeling well, so yeah...he'll manage it all," he said.

"But,"

"No ifs and buts, we're going," he said, pecking her forehead and she sighed, a soft smile playing on her lips.

"Okay baba, let's go, BUT, I swear to god I'll call Virat Sir if you make me get up right now, at six thirty or take me to do some sporty stuff," she warned him and he laughed out loudly, happy that Sara was back to her normal self. Her scary, charismatic, adorable, hot self.

"Yes ma'am," he said and Sara hummed, shutting her eyes closed.


🦚

"I hate you," Sara gritted her teeth as she came out of her room with a duffel bag. Shubman grinned at her.

"Good to know baby, give me that bag,"

"Shubman, it's fucking eight in the morning, why do we have to go on a goddamn date right now?" She groaned and he sighed.

"You can sleep in the car," he suggested.

"That would be so...icky," she said, frowning.

"Listen, we're going to Alibag for a night because we can't roam around in Mumbai freely, yeah? Alibag is like a two-hour drive or something, so if we leave now, we have the whole day to ourselves," he explained and Sara's frown turned into a smile.

"Alibag? I like Alibag. I have gone there so many times as a child!" She said.

"I know, and you have an evening shoot tomorrow, we'll be back before that and you will have time to rest before going to work. I already have a two-day break right now, so it all works out," he said, almost dragging her out of the house. "Let's go, okay?"

"Let's go!" Sara said, feeling a sudden surge of excitement as she kissed Shubman's cheek.


🦚


"LOVE YOU ZINDAGIIII, LOVE MEEE ZINDAGIII" Sara sang at the top of her lungs as Shubman drove the car on the smooth highway. He smiled, glancing at her from the corner of his eyes, taking a mental photograph of his beautiful girlfriend.

Just keep her happy. That's all that matters.

The drive continued, Shubman and Sara singing their hearts out to various Bollywood bops and Sara documenting snippets of their road trip. By 10:45, the two had reached the resort they were staying at. Shubman put on a cap and sunglasses and Sara put on her hoodie.

"I'll wait here, go and check in," she said, sitting beside the book stand and he nodded, complying. She handed him her Aadhar and he walked away, cautiously, not wanting anyone to recognise him.

"Let's go," Shubman returned after a good twenty minutes. "Room number 230" he mumbled and she nodded as the two followed an employee of the resort to the room. The resort was very elegant, like any typical five star hotel. Their room was almost a five minute walk from the reception.

"Keys please, sir" the employee politely said and Shubman stiffly nodded, handing the card. "There you go," the guy named Kiran said. "The extensions of the reception, housekeeping, and restaurant are given. There are people on the floor for your help too. We hope you have a good stay, Sir and Ma'am." He said, bowed slightly and walked out.

"Room's nice, " Sara commented and Shubman hummed. The room was good, no doubt. It was just a little lacklustre in comparison to the expensive suites he'd stay in all the time.

"Shub? Kay zala?" (Shub? What happened?) Sara asked, and Shubman snapped out of his thoughts.

"Nothing, I should have brought you to a better place, " he said and she looked at him, astonished.

"Seriously? Why do you need a piece better than this?" She said, in shock. He shrugged at her, keeping his sunglasses on the nightstand.

"I couldn't find anything better right now because it was so last moment, but I mean, "

"Shub, this IS a great place, stop stressing about the insignificant things so much, " she smiled at him.

"I don't want you to think I'm low effort, " he said and she rolled her eyes, pecking his lips.

"It's perfect, " she said.


🦚

Shubman stood near the door, scrolling on his phone while he waited for Sara to get ready.

"Shub! How do I look?" Sara excitedly asked him, coming out of the bathroom. His eyes snapped at her, his heart skipping a beat as he looked at her. She was dressed in a floral sundress with spaghetti straps and a fish cut. She twirled around, showing off her dress to him happily.

Shubman was in a haze as he saw her. She looked resplendent, the waves of her hair flowing around with her.

"Shubman?" she asked him again. He cleared his throat, and nervously looked at her, shaking his leg.

"You uhm...look nice, " he said and she clicked her tongue, taking her purse and putting it on her shoulder.

"I thought I looked hot, but nice works too I guess, " she said, interlinking their arms. Shubman looked flushed at Sara's statement, suddenly a little nervous.

"So, where are we going?" She asked.

"Well we'll have lunch here, and then I found the perfect beach for us to go to," he smiled and she nodded. "After that, we can do whatever, maybe just roam around the city a little, or go somewhere else for a dinner and everything, I don't know,"

"Cool," she smiled at him. "So much planning you've started doing hm? Someone's doing adulting correctly," she cheekily said and he chuckled softly.

"That's crazy. Me and adulting? We're enemies at this point," he shook his head, thinking about all the boring things he had to do since he became an 'adult' and started living alone.

"Why do you say so? I think you're doing very well," Sara smiled at him warmly, a smile which he reciprocated. "Stop stressing over every little thing, Shub. Everything you do is perfect," she assured him and he just nodded, grateful for her.



🦚



"And Abhay? Honestly, I'm so grateful for that guy. He was my roommate at tryouts, you know? He was the one who really pulled me outta my shell. Otherwise, you know how I am,"

"Awkward, introverted, way too shy?" Sara laughed and he rolled his eyes, smiling.

"Exactly. Then there's Ishan. All he has to do is walk into a room and people fall in love with him instantly," Shubman said and Sara nodded.

"That's true,"

"And Yashaswi? We're more alike. He's also really reserved and everything. But he's super chill after there's an established comfort level. He's hardworking and very dedicated. You know, like I feel so proud seeing him do so well. He's had a tough journey to reach here,"

Sara nodded as Shubman continued talking. The two were on a beach, a secluded one, but pretty anyway. Sara had brought along a mat for them to sit on as they enjoyed the cool beachside breeze. The sun was about to call it a day, making the sky a beautiful blend of yellow, orange, pink and a tinge of purple. It was a very serene setting for the new couple to just...talk. Something they needed to do.

"What about your seniors?" Sara asked, her curiosity increasing.

"Hm, let's see. So Virat bhaiyya is really the best guy ever. I have always idolised him and wanted to be like him. You know how they say that never meet your heroes? I respectfully disagree because I met my hero and he's a superhero for me now." Shubman paused.

"I mean Sara, he's greatness personified. Even after everything he's gone through, he smiles and steps on the field with a clear head. His name is going to be written in golden ink in the history of cricket and he still strives to be the best till the end point." A sigh left his lips. "He's such an inspiration, Sara. And on top of that, he's such a family man. He's a perfect son, husband and father," Shubman halted, smiling.

"I don't think I will ever stop talking about him," Shubman laughed softly and Sara smiled at him, gently rubbing his arm.

"It's nice to hear whatever you're saying," Sara said and Shubman looked at her, feeling at ease because of her reassurance. "Hm, so continue. What were you saying?"

"Hm, Rohit bhai is like the big brother to everyone. He won't express his affection and care verbally, but his actions do all the talking. He doesn't tolerate anyone saying shit about his team. And his cricketing brain...it's different, Sara. There's so much to learn from him. He comes from a place of so much experience and knowledge, obviously. He's amazing,"

"Then there's Hardik bhai. I came in close contact with him mainly in GT, yeah? Everyone thinks that he's just fun and chill, which he is. But he's so much more than that. He's sharp and unpredictable for the opposition, all the time. He stays on his toes and is extremely dedicated to the sport. He's a natural leader, despite being really relaxed, when he talks as the captain- you listen,"

"It seems like you've got great mentors, Shub," Sara smiled, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I do, hundred percent. That's enough inside information about Indian cricketers for today, what about you?"

"About me? I'm in a vicious cycle of shoots, award shows, music video launches, and birthday parties!" She giggled and he shook his head.

"Of course, I'm aware of that. But what about your co-actors? How's a day on set like? I do not know much about the process, in all honesty" he said.

"Oh, people outside the industry have zero clue about how shows and movies are made. Especially TV shows. There's so much going on that even I might not be aware of. See, in a movie you spend the money and then wait for the results. That's not how it is in the TV industry- you get your results every single day and the minute it's bad, you're done for. If you lose even one point of TRP, you start compromising on the details. Thankfully, Mohabbat hui hai isn't suffering from that a lot right now,"

"Hmm, but you had to add the entire accident thingy because of TRP problems right?"

"Yeah, but I think it was utilised well in the story. It improved the pacing of our narrative. Krishna's character has already accepted his feelings and all, you know?"

"Yeah, I saw the episode. He did really well, honestly"

"Oh, Krishna's a great actor. Many people think he's around because of his good looks but the truth is he spends a lot of time devoted to his craft. He takes each scene seriously and tries to understand the character by going beyond the script. He has such a deep process of everything that he does for his characters and I learnt from him, you know? He makes me a better actress,"

"Wow," Shubman just said, he couldn't help but feel slightly jealous.

"You know, you should come by sometime. Everyone would be really happy to meet you," Sara said and Shubman just nodded.

"Let's figure out a day,"

"Yeah, but I'll warn you- Sharvari will act like a complete weirdo, and Krishna might just faint, so don't freak out, okay?" She laughed.

"Might faint?" Shubman asked, in shock.

"Yeah, he's a huge fan," Sara said, emphasising on the word 'huge'.

"Oh, well I don't know if I can call myself a fan, Sara- but he's definitely a strong actor, I will make sure to tell him that," he said and Sara laughed.

"Well, what about me?" Sara pouted and he laughed.

"Well, I am a part of Sara's squad," he said, pecking her pout. "You're my favourite actress, I am definitely a huge fan of you,"

"That's good, don't praise Krishna too much, or he'll sweep you off your feet. He already has more cricket knowledge than me," Sara said and Shubman laughed.

"You do realise you're insane, right?"

"Oh, I'm well aware," she said.

🦚

Shubman and Sara were having their dinner in one of the banquet halls of the resort as they couldn't have it with others in the restaurant. The resort served a typical buffet menu consisting of roti, a sabji of paneer, a normal gravy-less sabji, pasta, salads, and desert.

"Goodness, I'll have to do double workout after everything I've eaten for two days," Shubman groaned as he had the last bite of roti and butter paneer masala. Sara laughed.

"Shub, abhi gulab jamun baaki hai! Look they're waiting for you," (Shub, you still need to eat gulab jamun! Look they're waiting for you) she giggled and he sighed.

"I'll always come back for you, my favourites," he grinned. "How many do you want?" He asked Sara.

"Three, and get,"

"Vanilla ice cream with it, I know," he smiled and she nodded, proud of him.

Shubman returned with two bowls of Gulab Jamuns with a scoop of vanilla ice cream over the top. As he had the first bite of the sweet, he closed his eyes instantly, relishing the flavour as the gulab jamun instantly melted in his mouth with the ice cream.

"Is this heaven?" He mumbled, in a daze. Sara chuckled at his extensive reaction.

"You're cute," she said, scrunching her nose.

"I thought I'm sexy, but okay. Cute works I guess," he said, referring to Sara's statement from earlier. Sara burst into laughter as she took a spoonful of ice cream.

"You are, don't worry," she laughed and he smiled at her.

"You're hot as well," he said, trying to flirt.

"You can't really flirt Shub, but it's fine- I accept you just the way you are," Sara giggled and he sighed, keeling a hand in his heart dramatically.

"Agar tum nahi hoti toh kya hota mera Sara," (What would I be if you weren't there?) he asked.

"Kuch nahi hota, mere star" (Nothing, my star)

A/N: I guess I did have a decent draft. From Besan ke laddoo to gulabjamun, my babies came a long way indeed <3
Also wrote a little about my favourite cricketers!

P.S: published a new book yesterday- it's called 'a love story'. The book's a short story, and I have written the entire thing in my drafts, I'll be done publishing the entire thing in the next nine days haha. (Total reading time of the book is eight minutes😭)

Anyway, a happy ShubSara chapter as this is the last one I'll be posting in '24! Do comment on this one, acha lagega :)
Goodbye, see y'all in 2025❤️

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