Mahi bhai radiates comfort. Everyone lucky enough to play under MS Dhoni or even be in the same squad as him could vouch for that. Bhuvi considered himself extremely lucky to grow under MS's wings. MS was not just a mentor, a guide for Bhuvi but his observant eye always found the kid whenever he needed any kind of assistance. It was indeed a great aid for Bhuvi, whose sweet nature always proved a hindrance whenever it came to voicing out that he needs help.

~~**~~

ICC Champions Trophy 2017: India vs Bangladesh

Bhuvi was a sweet kid. He rarely caused any trouble and honestly speaking, MS had a soft spot for the boy. Well, he had a soft spot for every kiddo that called him Mahi bhai!

MS rarely had to discuss their strategies with Bhuvi. He didn't need to talk out their plans. Bhuvi knew what was expected of him, and he usually did his job right.

Tasked with finishing the last over for India, Bhuvi found MS nodding to him, reassuringly. He focused back on the game when suddenly, he went down gingerly on the fourth ball of his over. MS was quick to approach the boy once the ball was fielded.

"Do you need the physio, Bhuvi?" Virat asked, and Bhuvi was quick to shake his head.

"It's his ankle," MS pointed out before Bhuvi could even speak a word. The latter could sense that Virat was going into protective big brother mode, and before he could do something like remove Bhuvi's shoes himself to check his ankle, Bhuvi stood up.

"I'm good. I can finish the over." Bhuvi insisted.

Virat shared a look with MS, who sighed softly and went back to his spot.

If Bhuvi thought that they had forgotten about his injury, then he'd be a fool to think that MS's eyes constantly on him was just a game strategy.

Once they had gotten back to the dressing room, Bhuvi came face to face with MS.

"Get the ankle checked, Bhuvi," MS instructed.

"It's fine," Bhuvi was quick to say.

"Bhuvi," Virat warned, not ready to believe that Bhuvi was being disobedient, but MS could see the slight fear in the boy's eyes.

"You're fine. You just need to ice that ankle, but I'd feel better if the doc says so too," MS smiled at the kid.

Bhuvi nodded, allowing Virat to fuss over him along with the doc.

If Mahi bhai was saying that he is fine, then there was no doubt that he is fine!

~~**~~

CWC 2019: India vs Pakistan

Bhuvi cherished his partnership with Jassi. He kind of liked the 'B and B' bowling partnership. They'd bowl in tandem and keep the pressure on the opponents, claiming wickets on important occasions. He knew how important a win against Pakistan was, and he was honestly loving the way the ball was obeying him until he slipped on the footmarks. The sharp pain that gripped the back of his thigh had the boy wince. He took a few deep breaths, wanting to soldier through his over, but MS was already shaking his head as he approached the boy.

"I can..." Bhuvi tried to speak up within the hushed conversation going between MS and Virat.

Virat turned around to glare at Bhuvi, who took the hint and shut up.

Soon, he was on his way back to the dressing room. Hardik walked alongside him, asking him if he was in pain, and Bhuvi would have replied if he wasn't too busy pouting.

Once in the dressing room, he insisted that he was feeling much better and got a message sent to Virat despite not feeling a hundred percent.

But there stood Virat, grinning to Shami as he looked towards the dressing room, and Bhuvi immediately felt a sigh build up.

'Virat told you to take it easy!'

"What's up with you, huh?" Virat drawled out as soon as they returned to the dressing room.

"We think it's his thigh," Bhuvi heard the physio explain, but he was still holding the back of his thigh, wondering why it hurt so much.

"It's not the hammie, right?" Bhuvi asked.

"You think it is?" MS asked.

"No... No... I'm just asking" Bhuvi stumbled through his words before looking up at MS, "I'm fine." His statement came out as a question more, and it had MS smiling softly at him.

"You will be fine," MS answered instead.

"You heard that?" Bhuvi turned to Virat with a smirk.

"Will be, Bhuv... Will be means soon but not yet," Virat emphasized, trying hard not to give in to the puppy eyes glaring at him.

Bhuvi soon learned what soon actually meant!

He missed three matches chasing his fitness in a World Cup! And it if didn't make him feel like tearing his hair apart, but a single 'you'll be fine soon' was enough to dissimilate the doubts clouding his minds.

~~**~~

SRH vs CSK IPL 2020

It's not that Bhuvi hated the IPL, but he wasn't a fan of facing his teammates. Over the years, it got better. He started looking forward to seeing his teammates occasionally and just relish in the opportunity of getting bragging rights if he got their wickets as well. But the one person whose wicket was a high priority was always MS Dhoni, and Bhuvi was so looking forward to this encounter. Except that it just didn't go the way Bhuvi would have thought.

He smiled slightly at MS, making his run in when that nasty pain grabbed him again. It was the thigh again. MS saw it first. The wince on Bhuvi's face as he aborted his run was all MS needed to figure out that his kid wasn't fine at all.

If this was the Indian team, MS would be barking orders by now, beckoning the physio over, but this wasn't his team.

So, he kept his distance, accepting the water bottle from Sam as he kept his eyes on Bhuvi.

Bhuvi's thigh had been strapped, and he looked determined to finish his over until he met MS's eyes. And then he was off! Nope, he couldn't continue!

And it seemed like MS still masters the skill of silent communication with his kids.

Later, MS found himself shaking his head fondly at the boy when he schooled his expressions to give Raina a smile on the video call.

"Are you sure you okay, Bhuvi?" Raina asked.

"I'm good, Sonu bhai. Don't worry," Bhuvi reassured the man.

Later Raina asked MS if Bhuvi was fine and the man couldn't help but worry.

And he was right to worry.

Two days later, MS got a phone call.

"You knew it was a bad injury" Bhuvi's tone was a dead giveaway of the hurt.

"Thigh injuries are usually complicated ones, Bhuvi," MS stated.

"You didn't tell me that I wouldn't be able to play now," Bhuvi whispered.

MS bit back a sigh as he heard the crack in Bhuvi's voice.

"You wouldn't be able to play this IPL, kiddo. There are more IPLs ahead. And there is more than the IPL, you know? There is Team India," MS softly explained.

"It will be fine?" Bhuvi couldn't help but ask.

"You will be fine" MS smiled.

MS didn't need to see Bhuvi's face to know that his kid would be okay now.

~~*~~

PBKS vs SRH IPL 2021

They were on a three-match losing streak, and Bhuvi wanted nothing other than to claim the first victory for the Sunrisers. Maybe he overworked himself in the process, but this wasn't the Indian Team, alright? So no one would be glaring at him (Virat) or sitting him down for a talk about overdoing things (MS).

He did have Manish or Kedar occasionally watching him or the younger Abhishek Sharma, who innocently asked him after practice, "Do I have to bowl this much in nets to get better?"

"Of course not," Bhuvi had reassured the little one, swinging an arm around Abhishek's, lecturing him about practicing but not over-practicing. He knew how disappointed the younger one was with how rarely he got a chance for the Sunrisers and his performance whenever he got a chance.

If Manish mumbled something like, "Follow what you're teaching the kid," then Bhuvi made it as if he couldn't hear him at all.

Bhuvi felt confident as he started bowling against Punjab. He even claimed Rahul's wicket, turning over his shoulder to give KL a sly smile. But as soon as he'd bowled the first two overs of his quota, Bhuvi felt the lingering pain catch up to him. He walked off right at the time his thigh protested, thinking he'd ice it and get back on the field. But he never got back. He had closed his eyes, letting the words of the physio run over him and barely catching words like 'thigh', 'again', 'rest', and 'how long.'

Once the match was over, he brushed over Rahul's concern, assuring the boy that he was fine.

"You sure you're okay?" KL asked.

"I'm good... Just a bit of pain. You okay, Rah?" Bhuvi asked when he saw Rahul rub his stomach slightly.

"Yeah, just a bit sore," Rahul mumbled before excusing himself.

Bhuvi escaped Kedar's well-meaning instructions and Manish's concern but also glares as he rushed to his hotel room. He had only one person on his mind that he desperately needed to talk to.

"Bhuvi? Are you okay, baccha? I saw the injury" MS was quick to pick up his phone as if he knew that one of his kiddos would be needing him.

"Mahi Bhai" Bhuvi sniffled. The shy Bhuvi was suddenly replaced by a scared and crying one.

"Bhuv?" MS called out.

"It happened again. My season is over" Bhuvi couldn't help but cry.

"Oh no, kiddo! Your season is not over," MS sighed.

"It's the thigh, bhaiyya. It's just like before. I... Bhaiyya..." Bhuvi trailed off, panic evident in his voice.

MS cursed himself for not being closer to the kid.

"Bhuvi... Hey, listen to me, baccha. Take a few deep breaths. Calm down. Just listen to me. I'm right here, okay? I'm not going anywhere" MS tried to ground the kid.

"Not going anywhere," Bhuvi whispered back.

MS smiled as he continued, "Yeah, I'm not going anywhere, kiddo. Now you listen to me! It's your thigh, right? Does the pain feel the same as before? Does it?"

"It hurts," Bhuvi mumbled.

"Bhuvi... Feel around your thigh! The pain is there, but it's surely not like before. Does it hurt to walk?" MS kept him calm person so that Bhuvi wouldn't panic. Even if he could barely remain calm when his kid was hurt.

"I can walk, but there is a tug at the back of the thigh occasionally, and yeah... It... Uh... It doesn't feel too bad... Certainly not like last season's," Bhuvi realized.

"See... It's not that bad, kiddo. Your season is not over. I'll give it 2 to 3 matches, and then you'll be back," MS reassured the boy.

"I'll be fine," Bhuvi breathed out.

"You will be fine," MS smiled, before adding, "granted that you rest, you keep those feet elevated. You don't over-practice once you get back to training."

"I will be fine," Bhuvi simply repeated.

"You will be fine, baccha," MS promised.

"Bhuvi bhaiyya, you okay?" Abhishek wandered in with Manish in tow.

"Ask him if he is done being stupid, then he'll be okay," Manish grumbled.

"Ugh... I'm not stupid, Mani. I'm elevating my foot, see!" Bhuvi retorted back before whispering in his phone, "Bye Mahi bhai. Love you."

"Love you too, kiddo," MS whispered back, voice heavy with emotions.

~~**~~

Bhuvi got back to the field soon, and though the pain bothered him from time to time, there was one thing that he was sure of; he'll be fine, no matter what!

When Mahi Bhai says that you'll be fine, nobody can stop you from being fine!

~~**~~

A/N

This one took some time, but I hope you will all like it. 

Dedicated to Ruchika111222!

Thank you for the 1K reads on this book.

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