Beyond The Boundary (Shubman Gill x Ishan Kishan)

8; in his place

The drive back home felt like eternity, accompanied by nothing but silence. Awkward silence. Awkwardly, annoyingly silent for a social butterfly like Ishan.

But Ishan cherished his life. He dared not utter a word when Shubman was in one of his pissed off states.

The car, however, buzzed annoyingly with mundane news. Like who cares about some guy spending more than 20,000 rupees on a game using his father's credit card without the old man knowing? This wasn't the time for such news.

Attempting to ease the tension, Ishan discreetly changed the news to some music, only to have Shubman switch it back to the news. And the entire drive went by with the annoying news playing in the background.

Upon reaching the hotel, Shubman parked the car in the lot. Just as Ishan was about to step out, he locked the car doors. Ishan sensed what was coming his way.

He questioned whether playing along Aditya's plan was truly worth it. Yet, the scene of Shubman's protective gesture at the club replayed in his mind. Actually, yes. Yes, it was totally worth it.

With a heavy sigh, he braced himself to face the storm beside him- a storm he didn't really mind facing if he was being honest. The only silver lining was the absence of the irritating news playing at the back.

"Are you gonna say something or...." Ishan broke the silence, unable to bear it any longer. Shubman's response came in as cold ice, "Say what?", his voice rough, "The fact that you were inches away from kissing a stranger back at the club?"

Ishan retaliated, "As if you didn't roam around drunk, locking lips with random girls at that one pub a year ago, during your double century celebration against New Zealand." He said all that in just one go.

Shubman defended, "Yeah, I did, but I wasn't in my right mind. I was wasted, and I admit I do regrettable things. Besides, it wasn't like I did that for my enjoyment-"

He abruptly paused and added, "Wait... Don't tell me you found pleasure in almost kissing that guy at the club." He couldn't fathom why the idea of Ishan enjoying it bothered him so much.

Caught off guard, Ishan denied, "What? NO! Heck no! Never." He quickly clarified, "And just so you know, I was gonna push him. You know I'm stronger than you." Ishan paused and hastily added, "Probably", he paused again, doubting his own statement, "Am I? I don't know."

An aggressive Shubman pressed, "Push him? When? After he had a taste of your lips?" The mere idea seemed to boil Shubman's blood, a disturbing thought, even though he couldn't pinpoint why.

Ishan, being a visual thinker, cringed as he pictured the scene in his mind. "What a horrible thought. Did you really have to phrase it like that?", he said, expressing his disgust.

With a sigh, Shubman leaned against his seat, letting his head fall back. "What am I even mad about?" he mused and admittted, "You know I hate arguing with you."

Sensing Shubman's tension easing, Ishan seized the moment, "You did promise me dinner, though." He was able to get a chuckle out of Shubman, finally!

Glancing at his watch, nearly 10:30 pm, Shubman proposed, "It's pretty late. How about I prepare something for you?" Ishan, grinning, asked, "Deal?" to which Shubman responded, "Deal."

The atmosphere at home was considerably lighter as Shubman took charge of the kitchen, preparing dinner for Ishan.

The clattering of pots and pans and the sizzle of ingredients in the pan seemed to drown out the lingering tension from the car ride.

At the dining table, Ishan observed as Shubman plated their dinner. Across from each other, they began their meal in silence.

"So," Ishan began, disrupting the quietude, "How was your date with Naina?" He asked in a teasing tone- an attempt at hiding the bitterness in his voice.