The Adjustment Period

With the truth finally out, things should’ve settled down.

But of course, when it came to Virat kohli, his overprotective tendencies, and a team full of troublemakers, nothing was ever that simple.

For one, Virat still had a hard time seeing Abhishek as anything other than his teammate.

Which meant every time Abhishek was even remotely near Meera, Virat’s big-brother instincts kicked in.

“Why are you sitting so close to her?”

Abhishek, who had been sitting a perfectly normal distance away, sighed. “Bhai, we’ve been dating for three years.”

Virat scowled. “Don’t ‘bhai’ me.”

Meera groaned. “Bhai, you need to chill.”

Virat scoffed. “Oh, I’m very chill.” He turned back to Abhishek. “Just making sure loverboy here knows I’m watching.”

Abhishek exhaled. “Oh, trust me. I know.”

And it wasn’t just Virat.

The entire team had way too much fun with this new development.

The Team’s Favorite Pastime: Teasing Abhi

Every time Virat called for a team meeting, Ishan would lean over and whisper, “Dad’s calling.”

Every time Abhishek performed well in a match, the boys would nudge Meera and go, “Your boyfriend is on fire today!”

Every time Abhishek missed a catch, someone (usually Ishan) would dramatically sigh, “Must be distracted thinking about Meera.”

Meera found it hilarious. Abhishek? Not so much.

One day, after a particularly bad practice session, Abhishek slumped onto a bench, exhausted.

Shreyas sat next to him, smirking. “Rough day?”

Abhishek glared. “If one more person calls Virat my father-in-law, I swear—”

Shreyas burst out laughing. “Oh, man. You’re in way too deep.”

Abhi groaned. He knew that.

Winning Virat Over. The only thing that made it somewhat worth it was that—slowly, very slowly—Virat was warming up to the idea.

Sure, he still gave Abhishek a hard time.

Sure, he still acted like he was on trial every day.

But he wasn’t as… aggressive.

In fact, one night, after a big match, Meera convinced Virat to go out for dinner with them, something surprising happened.

Meera had gotten up and went out to take a work call, leaving Abhishek and Virat alone.

There was a beat of silence before Virat finally muttered, “She’s happy with you.”

Abhishek looked up, surprised.

Virat wasn’t smiling, but he also wasn’t glaring, which was progress.

“You think so?” Abhishek asked carefully.

Virat sighed. “Yeah. And at the end of the day… that’s what matters.”

Abhishek blinked. “Wow. That almost sounded like approval.”

Virat scoffed. “Don’t push it.”

Abhi smirked. “Noted.”

Meera returned and they acted normal again.

She looked at them suspiciously and asked “God don't tell me you were arguing again?!”

“No, why would I argue with him.” ,Virat replied as he sat across from Meera and Abhishek at a quiet, upscale restaurant, swirling the glass of wine in his hand.

The tension that had once gripped him about their relationship had eased—or so he liked to believe. He still didn’t openly acknowledge it, but he had stopped giving Abhishek death stares during practice. That was something.

Meera was happily chatting away about something funny that had happened at work, and Abhishek was nodding, hanging onto her words like she was the only person in the room.

Virat sighed, stabbing at his grilled chicken. He could ignore the romance blooming in front of him, but only until something forced his attention to it.

And then it did.

A man from a nearby table, dressed in a slick black shirt and looking far too comfortable, sauntered over and leaned toward Meera.

"Hey, I couldn’t help but notice you from across the room. You’re stunning." His voice dripped with confidence, the kind that made Virat’s grip on his fork tighten.

Meera blinked, looking caught off guard. "Uh, thanks. But I’m—"

Before she could finish, Abhishek spoke, his voice calm but firm. "She’s with me."

The man barely spared him a glance, scoffing. "Relax, buddy. Just paying her a compliment."

Virat could feel the shift in the air. Meera frowned, clearly annoyed, and Abhishek’s jaw tightened.

Abhishek leaned forward, his usually easygoing demeanor gone. "And I’m just letting you know—she’s not interested."

Virat watched, surprisingly impressed at how steady Abhishek was handling it. But when the guy smirked and shrugged as if none of it mattered, Virat decided he had seen enough.

"She already said thanks," Virat cut in, his voice low but carrying the weight of authority he used on the field. "If you were half as smart as you think you are, you’d walk away."

The guy hesitated for a second, eyes flickering between Virat and Abhishek. Then, as if realizing he had picked the wrong table, he held up his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. No harm done."

As he walked away, Meera exhaled, shaking her head. "Some people just don’t get it."

Abhishek turned to her, concern clear in his eyes. "You okay?"

She smiled at him. "Yeah. Thanks for handling that."

Virat chewed on his next words before sighing. "You did good, Abhishek."

Abhishek looked up, clearly surprised. Meera, too, seemed stunned into silence.

"You’re still annoying, but… you did good," Virat added with a smirk, taking a sip of his drink as if the whole thing was no big deal.

Meera beamed, and Abhishek, for the first time that evening, looked like he had just won the biggest match of his life.

✧⁠*⁠。

That is it for today,

hope you guys like this update,

Bubyee