Overall 2019 hadn't been a good year for Kuldeep compared to 2017 and 18 even though he was in the top 10 wicket takers of the year in ODIs. Virat had spent a major part of the year trying to keep Kuliya's confidence up, because Kuliya was immature and severely prone to inferiority complexes.

His hattrick in the second last match of the year made Virat so happy that he stayed in a happy daze for two whole days after that, and finally it was the day of the 3rd ODI, the decider.

It was a small ground, and unfavorable for spinners. Virat got Jaddu's overs done quickly within the 37th over, but he kept Kuldeep for later, so that he could bait Pollard into a miscued lofted shot and remove him before the 45th.

Unfortunately, the plan backfired completely.

Already going expensive in the last few overs, Kuldeep conceded 3 sixes in his last, and Virat, who was steadily losing his temper at India throwing away their good position, stormed up to him and asked, "What are you doing?"

Kuldeep's eyes widened in shock at Virat bhai's unfamiliar tone.

"Have you ever learnt to use your brains at all? Do you always need someone to spoonfeed you what ball to bowl? What's the use of being an international bowler if...."

Kuldeep's chin was trembling slightly and he felt dangerously close to tears, because Virat bhai never yelled at him like this. But he would not cry in the middle of a match. He could not look at Virat bhai, and remained quiet.

If Kuldeep had been answering back, Virat might have calmed down but this silence only made him madder.

"You're impossible, Kuldeep," said Virat in disgust as he stalked back to his fielding position.

Kuldeep blinked and walked back to take his run up, trying to breathe evenly. He couldn't wait for the inning to end when he could go into the dressing room and hide from everyone.

Yuzi, watching the entire thing from the dugout, could have hit Virat bhaiya at that moment for hurting Kuldeep, and Rohit, staring at Virat ruefully, could only think, Virat was going to regret this so much later.

***

Kuldeep almost rushed off the field straight to the dressing room after WI's inning got over, not daring to meet Virat bhai's disappointed and angry gaze.

Yuzi followed him and sat beside him in the corner silently, and though Kuldeep badly wanted to be alone, he just couldn't push Yuzi away.

The others artfully stayed away from the dressing room, and Jaddu kept Virat with him in the dugout when Rohit and Rahul went out to open.

Kuldeep and Yuzi sat quietly, the former holding back tears, and the latter aching to comfort his little brother.

"You're overthinking, Kul," said Yuzi finally. "Let's go out to the dugout."

"No!" said Kuldeep.

Yuzi heard the tremor in his voice and hugged him fiercely. "Don't you dare cry over this, it's nothing, Kul... it was just one day."

"Virat bhai said I don't use my brains while bowling," said Kuldeep with a sob now that he was in Yuzi's arms. "I've been thinking about it, and he's right."

"Of course he's not right, Kul, don't be stupid!" said Yuzi.

"Virat bhai hates me Yuzi!" wailed Kuldeep.

"God, just listen to him," said Yuzi, rolling his eyes. "Come out to the dugout this instant instead of moping around. Come!"

Yuzi pulled a resisting Kuldeep out, whispering to him all the while, "Nobody hates you, stop being silly, it was just a normal bad day, calm down, calm down..."

Kuldeep had calmed down a lot by the time they reached the dugout, but as they entered, he saw Virat bhai grinning teasingly and throwing a ball at Shubman's head, startling him. Shubman tried to catch the ball next time he threw it and he was wearing a look of devotion Kuldeep recognized very well.

And within moments, he was back on the verge of tears, and he clenched his fists as they walked past Virat bhai and Shubman.

Kuldeep sank down in a seat and went into a spiral of depressing thoughts.

Clearly, he had been replaced in Virat bhai's life. That was why he had shouted at him instead of protecting him like he used to do earlier. That was why he was teasing Shubman like he used to tease him earlier, too.

Kuldeep chanced a glance at Virat bhai and saw him bending and saying something to Shubman, and he looked away in despair, determined that if he had been replaced, he would not force himself on Virat bhai and make him uncomfortable.

After all it was Virat bhai's choice.

If Kuldeep had looked at Virat properly and seen how guilty and miserable he looked too, he wouldn't have thought so.

By now, Virat was feeling horrified with himself at how he had treated Kuliya. Hadn't he felt so mad at his teammate Moeen when he had made Kuliya break down in a match? How could he have done the same thing? How could he have continued to yell at a trembly chinned Kul instead of hugging him?

Kuldeep and Yuzi had walked past him without a word, and Virat felt 10 times worse about that. But if Kuldeep didn't want to talk to him, he couldn't really blame him.

Of course, the best thing to do now was to go and give Kuliya a hug then and there, but as Virat was in that 'Should I go? Or should I not?' stage, Rohit got out and he had to bat.

He looked back at Kuldeep once, but Kuldeep would not look at him.

Virat went out to the field with a very heavy heart.

***

Kuldeep was in a very negative mood during the trophy lifting and post series party and Virat was horrified to see Kuldeep clearly avoiding him like that, when usually, Kuldeep always stuck to him like a faithful shadow, and he wondered what it would take to make Kuliya forget his awful behaviour.

Kuldeep lurked around in the shadows and mournfully observed Virat bhai, and began to get more and more see worked up as he saw Virat bhai snatching a glass of hard drinks out of Shubman's hands and hitting him on the head, clearly reprimanding him. Shubman was apologizing, and the slavish look never left his face.

Kuldeep hated himself for feeling like this, because Shubman, being his junior in KKR for the last two seasons, was pretty close to him, and it was ridiculous that he should feel so jealous about him.

But how could he not feel jealous when he had replaced him in Virat bhai's eyes?

Yuzi noticed Kuldeep standing in the shadows and went up to him and demanded, "What's up with you, Kul? For god's sake, go and talk to Virat bhaiya if it matters to you so much!"

"No, no," said Kuliya earnestly. "Look, he is spending time with everyone now. He has other people to look after, Yuzi."

Yuzi turned sharply and saw Virat bhaiya looking completely unaware of Kul's misery alone in this corner, and without a word, he stalked up to him.

"Yuzi, what are you..." called Kuldeep, going after him.

"Virat bhaiya," said Yuzi in a loud furious voice. "After your idea of keeping Kul for the last overs didn't work, after you shouted at him like that, can't you even go and tell him it's ok? Can't you even check on him once to see if he's ok--"

"Yuzi, don't speak to him like that!" said Kuldeep in a subdued but firm voice, straightaway leaping to Virat bhai's defense.

Kuldeep took Yuzi's arm and dragged him away, beginning to say something, and Virat rushed after them, determined to make his Kuliya happy again.

"Yuzi, if he wants someone else in his life, it's his choice, we cannot force him," Virat heard Kuldeep saying urgently.

Who else did Kuliya think he wanted in his life? wondered Virat.

"And I'm a bowler, he can shout at me," said Kuldeep. "He can't keep on... defending me all the time, so what was the need for you to go and yell at him?"

"Kuliya no," said Virat, and Yuzi and Kuldeep turned and saw that he had heard it all. "Let him shout...I deserve it. I shouldn't have shouted at you like that in the field...and after that I should've at least apologized..."

Kuldeep stared at Virat bhai.

"I didn't but..." said Virat uncomfortably. "But this is also true that no one can replace you, Kuliya--why would you ever think that?"

All of Kuldeep's sadness disappeared when Virat bhai said that 'no one can replace you, Kuliya' and Yuzi started to smile. He should've trusted Virat bhaiya to say the right thing.

"Why did you think that, Kuliya?" asked Virat, reaching forward and ruffling his little brother's curly hair. "What put this in your stupid head?"

"Virat bhai...I..." Kuldeep said hesitatingly.

"You won't tell me?" asked Virat, taking to emotional blackmail.

Kuldeep, of course, fell right for it. He looked away and mumbled, "I just saw...you love Shubman a lot now..."

Virat's eyes misted over with affection at the child's innocence.

"Of course I do love Shubman, but not more than you, kiddo," said Virat straight from his heart. "Never more than you."

He lifted Kuldeep's head to make him look at him, and said, "How can I, Kuliya? Do I have to explain to you how much you mean to me?"

Suddenly Kuldeep saw that Virat bhai looked a bit hurt too now, and he hugged immediately Virat bhai and said, "No, Virat bhai, no--I'm sorry!"

Virat squeezed Kuliya to him and said, "Why are you apologizing, you idiot?"

Kuldeep was feeling perfectly at peace with the world as Virat bhai kept hugging him for a long time.

Yuzi surveyed them grimly. "Great, now I'm the bad guy for having shouted at Virat bhaiya!"

Seeing that Kuldeep wasn't speaking, because he only wanted to snuggle into him, Virat said, "'Course not, Yuz." He extended an arm, and Yuzi went and joined the hug too.

"Thanks for standing up for my Kuliya, Yuzi," Virat told him.

Yuzi grinned widely, for once not asserting that Kuliya belonged only to him and no one else.

And then he said, "Now that Virat bhaiya and Kul have made up, you know what this calls for?"

"What?" asked Kuldeep as Virat groaned.

"A Chahal.TV episode!"

Virat tried to escape from the hug as Yuzi was pulling out his camera, but Kuldeep held on to him stubbornly and protested.

"We can do it for Yuzi, Virat bhai!"

How could he deny Kuliya anything? Could he ever deny Kuliya anything?

So Virat conceded, "All right. Just for you then, Yuzi."