Rohit and Virat were walking on the terrace few days before the Sri Lanka series, talking peacefully, when Virat randomly felt like needling Rohit.

"You're a jealous insecure prick, you know that?" asked Virat.

Rohit narrowed his eyes.

"Did you?" persisted Virat.

"I'm not," said Rohit.

Virat grinned cheekily and muttered something like forgot Rahul and ABD already?

These days Rohit couldn't believe he had felt Rahul was becoming Virat's best friend once, so he fired up and said, "It's normal to be...jealous--" Rohit said the word with great difficulty. "--when you're sticking to ABD like a leech!"

"Ha!" said Virat triumphantly. "I do not feel jealous when you're sticking to anyone like a sloth!"

Rohit seemed to take awful offence at being called a sloth.

"That's clearly because you don't love me at all, and I do," he said stiffly.

Virat looked like he was about to start laughing, and Rohit added, "I bet you'd feel jealous too if it was about anyone you love."

"No, 'cause I'm not abnormal like you," said Virat at once.

"If you had been just as abnormal as Rohit, you'd have been at least 10 times more normal than you are right now, Virat," came a snide voice behind them.

They jumped out of their skins and saw Jaddu walking right behind them.

"When did you come?" asked Rohit in horror.

"And what did you say!" demanded Virat.

"I came with you when you came," said Jaddu with a wide grin. "And Virat, I said that if you had been just as abnormal..."

Seeing that Jaddu was quite capable of repeating the entire thing again, Virat broke in, saying, "And you've been tailing us?"

"He's gradually becoming a ghost from a human," said Rohit ominously. "Though what you said was quite correct, Jad."

"I know," said Jaddu peacefully.

Rohit sent Virat a sideways glance, struck with sudden inspiration.

"And do you know Mahi bhai sent Jaddu a snow toy yesterday similar to the one they had seen during the last IPL?" asked Rohit.

Virat stared.

Jaddu stared.

"A snow toy?" asked Virat.

"Yes, didn't he?" asked Rohit, looking pointedly at Jaddu.

"He did," says Jaddu solemnly. "We go to look at snow toys every year twice, Virat-- Mahi bhai and I."

Virat seemed to be processing this in his head.

"Are you jealous? Are you jealous?" cackled Rohit in delight.

"I'm not," said Virat, quite truthfully. "Why would I be?"

Rohit was stumped. "Because... because Mahi bhai didn't send you a snow toy?"

Instead of answering, Virat took out his phone and called Mahi bhai and put it on speaker.

"Cheeku?" said Mahi bhai, his voice taking on that special tender tone it always did while talking to Virat.

"Mahi bhai, will you send me a snow toy?"

"A... what?" asked Mahi bhai.

"A snow toy!" said Virat loudly. "The kind you sent Jaddu!"

Jaddu and Rohit had started to laugh uproariously, and Mahi bhai heard it in the background.

As Virat glared at them, Mahi bhai said disapprovingly, "So Ro and Jad have been messing with you again. Give them the phone!"

A delighted Virat thrust the phone into Rohit's hands.

"In the unlikely case that I do find a snow toy, I'll send it to Cheeku first," Mahi bhai told Jaddu and Rohit severely, and Virat was positively beaming by now.

After the call, Virat said triumphantly, "Me--jealous about Mahi bhai! Bah!"

Rohit resolved to teach this git a proper lesson.

***

Virat was super excited. Jassi was coming back after ages and ages, and he just couldn't wait.

Every time India was receiving a hammering from West Indies last month, Virat had found himself wishing Jassi was here.

And not only for being his go-to bowler... He missed Jassi's presence terribly, because not once since 2016 had he gone out of the team, and Virat hadn't fully grasped how much Jassi's presence counted in the team, and to him.

"Is his flight late? Why hasn't he come yet?" said Virat anxiously at the gate of the hotel to Rohit, who was standing with him.

"It's not time yet," said Rohit patiently, absent-mindedly searching stuff on Google.

"We've waited for 4 months, what's a few minutes more," sighed Virat.

Rohit suddenly came across an interesting article. In the back of his mind, he knew he shouldn't show this to Virat but he badly wanted to give Virat a taste of his own medicine, so he handed his phone to Virat and said, "Take a look at this while you wait."

Virat read through it thrice before he could register it, and realised with dismay how fearfully disappointed he was feeling.

Of course Mahi bhai was the best captain India had ever had, but if he was being completely honest with himself, he knew he had always hoped--or rather assumed--that for Kuliya and Jass, at least, he was the most special one.

That was how they treated him, too, thought Virat. But clearly he had misjudged the level of their devotion.

Suddenly Virat didn't want to meet Jassi anymore, he felt so inadequate. Jassi wouldn't be all that happy to see him after all; he'd only be sad that Mahi bhai wasn't here.

Rohit immediately felt bad seeing the undeniable hurt in Virat's face. Virat noticed Rohit looking at him and tried to say casually, "That's not a surprise, is it? We all know Mahi bhai is the best."

"Yeah," muttered Rohit, not wanting to press the issue at the moment.

Few minutes later, the entire team arrived at the gate because Jassi's cab was due, and when he stepped out of the cab, an entire wild team descended on him.

Hardik, who had missed Jassi much more than he'd ever care to admit, attempted to strangle him, and Jassi had to be rescued by Bhuvi who hugged him much more gently. Then Rohit hugged him, grinning, and so did the rest, but Virat could only pat him on the shoulder and say in a rather dull tone, "Welcome back, Jassi."

Jassi, who was absolutely thrilled with the welcome he had recieved, and was radiant at being back home, hugged Virat and said, "I missed you, Virat bhaiya!"

"I missed you too," said Virat, but it came out a little forced, and Jassi's smile faltered.

Before he could dwell on that, however, Hardik grabbed him again and pulled him away, yelling something like, "I have a birthday gift for you!"

Jassi looked back and was relieved to see Virat bhaiya smiling at Hardik's antics. Maybe he had just imagined his reservedness.

***

After the practice session, the ICT had to celebrate Jassi's return with a FIFA match, of course.

"Where's Virat bhaiya?" asked Yuzi, when most of the team was gathered in their room.

"I'll call him," said Jassi at once, and ran all the way to Virat's room.

Feeling like a terrible idiot, in spite of knowing that he was being stupid, Virat was in his room alone, not wanting to go out at all.

"Virat bhaiya!" Jassi burst into the room. "Come and play FIFA with us!"

"No, you play with Hardik and KulCha, Jassi, I don't feel like it," said Virat.

"No, you come, bhaiya, I won't play without you," said Jassi stubbornly.

Only because Mahi bhai isn't here, thought Virat viciously.

"What's this childishness, Jassi?" asked Virat, much more harshly than he'd intended.

Jassi looked confused and hurt.

"Virat bhaiya, did I...did I do anything to offend you?" he asked quietly and nervously.

Virat mentally cursed himself. It wasn't Jassi's fault at all. It wasn't fair to take it out on him.

"No, you haven't," said Virat, trying to smile.

"I know that tone of your voice," said Jassi, still more stubbornly.

"Really, Jassi..." said Virat, beginning to get annoyed at this interrogation, because he wasn't going to tell Jassi about it, no matter how much he bothered him.

For a moment Jassi contemplated on what to do, then he just went and hugged Virat.

"I came back after so long and you're angry at me," said Jassi, unsure if this was going to mollify him or anger him further. "What did I do, Virat bhaiya?"

Virat couldn't bring himself to not hug him back.

"I tell you you didn't do anything...and even if I'm upset, why are you so concerned?"

Jassi looked shocked at the question.

"Because.... you're my big brother?" he said tentatively. "And one of the most special people in my life... Please tell me what I did, bhaiya, what upset you?"

He called me special, thought Virat, suddenly feeling ridiculously happy. And he's concerned. He cares so much.

So what if Jassi had called Mahi bhai the better captain? Jassi was his kid too, just like he was Mahi bhai's. Though to be sure, he would have much rather preferred having Jassi all to himself--coming to that, he'd have liked to have Mahi bhai all to himself as well, but neither was possible, so...

"Virat bhaiya," pleaded Jassi, interrupting his thoughts.

Virat tightened his arms around Jassi and kissed him on the forehead, saying, "Sorry for behaving like that, Jass. I...I love you, kiddo. You can never upset me."

Jassi sensed that Virat bhaiya really wasn't upset anymore.

"Let's go and join the FIFA match then, shall we, Jassi?" said Virat.

"Yes, Virat bhaiya! You're the best!" cried Jassi, jumping up from the bed in a hurry.

Jassi was so much like Bhuvi and Jinks; they never got mad at Virat, no matter what he did.

"If I'm the best, what's Mahi bhai?" asked Virat teasingly.

"He's the best too," says Jassi seriously. "You're both..."

Rohit looked in just then and asked, "What's taking you this long, Jass?"

Jassi looked at Rohit bhaiya and completed to Virat that all three of them were equally awesome, and hence the best.

"How many bests do you have, Jass?" asked Virat, deadpanning. "It contradicts the definition of 'best', don't you think?"

"How can I choose between my elder bothers, Virat bhaiya?" said Jassi earnestly. "I love all of you the same, you mean the world to me."

Rohit was heartfelt glad that Virat seemed to have got over his hurt at Jassi's words.

"Why are you asking me this, though, Virat bhaiya?" added Jassi as an afterthought.

"It's ok, don't get worked up, child," said Virat. "I'm ok with sharing the best title with Mahi bhai and this idiot... And Ro, stop being so jealous."

"What the hell did I do?" demanded poor Rohit.

Virat ignored him and pulled Jassi into his chest again and said, "Let's go. We'll be in the same team, Jass. And we could push Rohit into the opposition if we have any luck."

Jassi laughed, but of course, immediately felt guilty, because Rohit bhaiya might be hurt.

As Virat was pulling him along, Jassi turned to Rohit and saw him standing with a content and loving smile on his face.

Jassi didn't know the reason. But there was a good reason behind it.