"Beyond The Boundary "

Nazdeekiyan Badhne Lagi (The Closeness Began)

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It started with casual texts. A “Good morning” here, a meme there, sometimes a random reel Rihi found funny that she hesitantly shared with him.

To her surprise, shubman laughed. Every time.

He’d send voice notes sometimes. His voice—calm, laid-back, and warm—would linger in her ears longer than she admitted.

But even as they grew closer, she kept reminding herself: don’t fall too fast.

Because she still didn’t believe that someone like Shubman Gill, Indian cricket's golden boy, could actually be interested in someone like her. Ordinary. Imperfect. Trying to figure life out one step at a time.

She still hesitated to send her selfies.

Still wore oversized tees when they video called.

Still muted herself when she laughed too loud.

But Shubman noticed things. Quiet things.

“Why do you hide your face when you smile?” he asked once.

She shrugged. “My smile’s too big.”

“I like it that way,” he said, without skipping a beat.

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Meanwhile, in her house, life was chaotic in the best way.

Aashna was in full filmy mode — replaying voice notes from Abhishek Sharma and analyzing every word like she was writing a PhD on “Signs He Likes You.”

“Di, usne bola ‘tu coffee peena pasand karti hai?’ That means date na?”

“Or maybe he’s just… asking,” she deadpanned, sipping chai.

“Di, why are you like this?”

But she wasn’t being mean. She was just... scared. Scared to believe that anything this beautiful could be hers to keep.

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One evening, while on a call with Shubman, he paused and asked, “Can I meet your family sometime?”

Rihi nearly dropped her phone.

“Why?!”

“I don’t know,” he said, chuckling, “It’s just... I want to know where you come from. What made you you.”

She stayed quiet.

“Too fast?” he asked.

“Not fast. Just… scary.”

He waited. Then softly added, “I’m not here to scare you. Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.”

She smiled. A sad, tiny smile.

Because for the first time, someone wasn’t rushing her.

He was matching her pace. Step by step.

---

But life wasn’t a movie.

Insecurities still clung to her like shadows.

Sometimes she’d scroll through Sara Tendulkar’s pictures and compare.

Sometimes she’d wonder if this was all just a phase for him.

She’d ask herself: What if he wakes up one day and realises I’m not enough?

What she didn’t know — was that Shubman was having his own battles.

The media was already speculating about his love life again.

And when a reporter tried to casually ask about “a mystery girl,” he had brushed it off.

But somewhere deep down, he wanted to protect her from that world. The noise. The judgment.

Because unlike others, she hadn’t come into his life because of who he was. She stayed despite it.

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One Sunday afternoon, she stood on the balcony of her house, scrolling through old pictures on her phone. She found one of her as a child, wearing a cricket helmet that was way too big for her face.

She laughed.

Then hesitated... and sent it to Shubman.

> You: "Proof that main bhi cricketer ban sakti thi."

> Shubman: "Bas ab mujhe dar lag raha hai ki tum meri jagah le logi team mein."

> You: "Wahan tak pahuchne ke liye kaafi confidence chahiye."

> Shubman: "Tumhare paas already sab kuch hai. Tumhe bas khud pe bharosa nahi hai."

And that was the thing.

He believed in her—more than she ever had.

And slowly, with every message, every call, every “good night” sent at 2 a.m., the fear began to loosen its grip.

Not vanish.

But soften.

Because sometimes, love doesn’t arrive with violins and candlelight.

Sometimes, it arrives with a message that says: “I’m here. Even when you’re silent.”

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Hello cuties

Here is the third chapter hope you'll like it
Shubman Abhishek Aashna and Rihi..double date?

Shubman is so understanding need him In my life man...
We're all delusional!
Till then take care 💙

Next chapter maybe by night or tomorrow.