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Chapter 5 - The Internet Was Cruel

The first three days after Virat's post were exhausting.

Not dramatic.

Not cinematic.

Just mentally exhausting.

Because no matter how much privacy you asked for, once the internet got hold of something involving Virat Kohli, it spread everywhere.

Sports pages were reposting his stories.News channels were discussing it in "debate" tones.Instagram reels used emotional music over blurry airport clips.

And worst of all?

People had opinions about a child they had never even seen properly.

-

Inside the Kohli house, things were quieter than usual.

Virat had become even stricter.

No staff member was allowed to discuss Anaira outside.Phones stayed away around her.Security had doubled outside the gates.Curtains near the front lawn stayed closed most of the day.

It was becoming suffocating.

Not because they regretted taking her in.

Never that.

But because the world outside didn't know how to leave things alone.

-

Virat was sitting in his study late at night scrolling silently through his phone.

His jaw tightened more with every passing minute.

He had seen hate before.

Career hate.Performance criticism.Trolling.

That didn't affect him anymore.

But this?

This was different.

Because Anaira was eight.

Eight-year-olds shouldn't trend online.

And they definitely shouldn't become discussion topics for strangers.

The comments were horrible in the most casual way possible.

That was the scary part.

People didn't even realize how cruel they sounded.

"Why does this feel suspicious?"

"Poor kid looks terrified."

"Why even post about her if you want privacy?"

"Internet will find her anyway."

"Celebrities love attention."

"This whole thing feels so fishy."

"Random child suddenly becomes a Kohli?"

Virat locked his phone suddenly.

Hard.

Too hard.

The sound echoed in the quiet room.

-

Downstairs, Aarav was sprawled on the couch pretending to study chemistry.

Pretending.

Because he had been staring at the same page for ten minutes.

His phone buzzed again.

Another reel.

Another discussion.

Another "theory."

He opened the comments once by mistake and immediately regretted it.

People were zooming into airport pictures trying to figure out what Anaira looked like.

Someone had even written:

"She hides like she's in a movie."

Aarav actually got angry.

Not irritated.

Angry.

Because Anaira genuinely was scared of cameras.

She hid behind people naturally.

Even inside the house sometimes, if too many staff members suddenly spoke to her together, she'd quietly move behind Anushka.

And strangers online were mocking that fear like it was some act.

"Idiots," he muttered under his breath.

-

Upstairs, completely unaware of everything happening online, Anaira sat cross-legged on Anushka's bed with one of Virat's old cricket magazines open in front of her.

She had recently become fascinated by cricket names.

Mostly because she couldn't pronounce half of them.

And everyone laughed whenever she tried.

Not in a mean way.

In a helplessly affectionate way.

Anaira pointed seriously at a picture in the magazine.

"Rambhgir."

Anushka looked over immediately and burst out laughing softly.

"That's Gambhir, baby."

Anaira frowned hard.

"Gam...bh..."

Her eyebrows squished together.

"...Rambhgir."

Virat had walked into the room halfway through and paused near the door.

The second he heard it, he actually laughed.

Like genuinely laughed.

Not the tired forced smile he'd been giving everyone for days.

"No," he said, sitting beside her. "Definitely not Rambhgir."

Anaira looked offended instantly.

"Why cricket peoples names so difficultly?"

Virat blinked.

"Difficultly?"

"Yes."

She nodded confidently.

"Very difficultly."

Virat looked at Anushka."She invents grammar every day."

"I NOT inventing."

Then quieter-

"It just comes out."

Anushka actually had tears in her eyes from laughing now.

And Virat-

for the first time in days-

looked lighter.

Because she was so unintentionally cute it was impossible not to soften around her.

-

Then Virat's phone rang.

The mood changed immediately.

He checked the caller ID.

Management.

Again.

His expression shifted subtly.

Anaira noticed instantly.

Children always noticed.

"Papa work again?"

Virat stood up slowly."Yeah baby."

She made a tiny sad face.

Virat's chest tightened a little at that.

He kissed the top of her head before leaving the room.

"I'll come back."

Anaira nodded seriously like she was holding him to that promise.

-

Downstairs, the call lasted almost twenty minutes.

Aarav could tell it wasn't good from Virat's tone alone.

Short answers.

Controlled voice.

Dangerously calm.

"What do you mean people are trying to find her school?"

A pause.

"No."

Another pause.

"Take it down immediately."

Silence.

Then finally-

"I don't care how much it costs."

Aarav sat straighter immediately.

The second the call ended, he asked:

"What happened?"

Virat rubbed his forehead slowly.

"Some accounts are spreading fake information. Claiming they know where she studied."

Aarav's expression darkened instantly."She's literally a child."

Virat looked at him.

"I know."

And somehow that sentence sounded heavier every time he said it.

-

Anushka came downstairs a little later with Anaira in her arms.

Anaira had gotten sleepy.

Her face was buried in Anushka's neck while she held her rabbit tightly.

The moment Virat looked at her, something inside him settled again slightly.

Because this was reality.

Not comments.

Not headlines.

This.

A sleepy child trying to feel safe.

Anaira noticed Aarav sitting nearby and immediately stretched one hand toward him.

"Bhaiya."

Aarav looked surprised for half a second.

Then took her carefully from Anushka instinctively.

Anaira curled into him immediately.

Like she had done this forever.

Anushka noticed it.So did Virat.

Neither said anything.

-

Aarav adjusted her slightly.

"You sleepy?"

Anaira nodded against his shoulder.

Then suddenly whispered very seriously-

"Rambhgir still difficult."

Aarav stared at her for two seconds.

Then laughed so hard he almost dropped his phone.

Virat covered his face briefly trying not to laugh too.

Even Anushka laughed helplessly.

Anaira looked deeply confused.

"What?"

Aarav shook his head.

"Nairuu, his name is GAM-bhir."

Anaira tried again stubbornly.

"Ram...bhgir."

"Wrong again."

"Rambhgir."

"Gambhir."

"Rambhgir."

Aarav gave up entirely.

Virat leaned back on the couch finally laughing properly for the first time in days.

And for a few minutes-

the internet disappeared.

The comments disappeared.

The pressure disappeared.

Because somehow, this tiny little girl with terrible pronunciation and sleepy eyes kept bringing life back into rooms without even trying.

-

But later that night, things got bad again.

Virat saw another reel.

This one slowed down airport footage of him carrying Anaira.

And the comments underneath finally crossed the line completely.

People mocking how tightly she hid her face.

"How dramatic."

"She acts scared for attention."

"Why hide this much?"

"Kids don't behave like this naturally."

Virat stared at the screen silently.

Too silently.

Aarav looked over and immediately understood.

"Don't read them," he said quietly.

Virat kept staring for another few seconds.

Then suddenly stood up.

Picked up his phone.

Opened Instagram.

Anushka watched from the couch carefully.

Because she knew that expression.

Virat typed slowly.

Not emotionally.

Worse.

Controlled anger.

Then he posted the story.

Some of you seriously need to stop.

She hides from cameras because they overwhelm her. She says words wrong because she's EIGHT years old. She gets nervous around strangers because her entire life changed suddenly.

You are talking about a child like she's content for entertainment.

Leave her alone.

The story went live.

Silence filled the room afterward.

Virat threw his phone onto the couch beside him and leaned back, exhausted.

Then softly-

almost to himself-

"She didn't ask for any of this."

No one replied.

Because there was nothing to say.

Virat was leaving at 4:30 in the morning.

A one month test series tour.

Normally, the house would've been used to this routine by now.

Suitcases near the hallway.Management calls at odd hours.Security movement outside before sunrise.Anushka helping him pack the last few things while half asleep.

This life wasn't new for them.

But this time-

there was Anaira.

And somehow, that changed everything.

-

The house was still dark when Virat stepped out of the dressing room wearing his travel hoodie.

His duffel bag already waited near the door.

The air itself felt sleepy.

Quiet.

He walked into the bedroom expecting everyone to still be asleep.

Instead, he froze.

Anaira was awake.

Sitting in the middle of his and Anushka's bed with her rabbit in her lap.

Tiny.Sleepy.Hair messy.

But awake.

Her eyes immediately found him.

"Papa?"

Virat's heart genuinely sank a little.

Because he knew that tone.

Children somehow always sensed departures before adults even explained them.

He walked toward her slowly.

"Why are you awake, baby?"

Anaira stared at him for a few seconds.

Then her eyes shifted toward the suitcase near the door.

And instantly-

her expression changed.

Not dramatic.

Not loud.

Just small heartbreak appearing slowly on a child's face.

"You going?"

Virat sat beside her carefully.

"Only for work."

Anaira's lips trembled immediately.

"No."

One word.

Soft.

Terrified.

Virat's chest twisted painfully.

Anushka had just entered the room behind him and stopped quietly at the doorway.

Because the second Anaira understood he was leaving-

she completely broke.

"No no no no-"

Tears filled her eyes instantly.

Virat immediately pulled her into his lap.

"Hey hey hey-"

But Anaira had already started crying properly.

Not tantrum crying.

Scared crying.

The kind where little kids can't breathe properly between sentences.

"You go too long," she cried against his chest. "Too too too long..."

Virat held her tighter immediately.

"I'll come back."

"No!"

She shook her head violently.

"You went yesterday also!"

Virat blinked once.

Yesterday.

He had gone for a sponsor shoot for six hours.

And in her head, that already counted as leaving.

His throat tightened badly.

"Baby, listen to me-"

But Anaira was crying harder now.

Tiny fingers clutching his hoodie desperately.

"No go..."

Anushka quietly sat beside them, rubbing Anaira's back gently.

"Nairuu..."

But Anaira looked genuinely panicked now.

Because somewhere in her small mind-

people leaving had become terrifying.

Virat realized it instantly.

And God, that realization hurt.

Because she wasn't just sad.

She was scared he wouldn't come back.

-

"Anaira."

Virat cupped her face gently.

She was crying so hard her eyelashes were wet.

"I need you to listen to Papa carefully, okay?"

She shook her head stubbornly while crying.

"No."

Virat almost smiled painfully despite himself.

Even crying, she argued.

He wiped her tears softly with his thumb.

"Look at me."

Slowly, she did.

Virat spoke very quietly then.

The calmest voice he had.

"I have to go play cricket for some days."

Anaira sniffled hard.

"Don't play."

Anushka actually looked away for a second because her own eyes had filled.

Virat exhaled shakily.

"If I don't play, your Aarav bhaiya will make fun of me."

That got the tiniest pause out of her.

Just enough for him to continue.

"And I promise you something."

Anaira looked at him with watery eyes.

"I'll call you every single day."

Silence.

Then quietly-

"Pakka promise?"

"Pakka promise."

"You not lie?"

"I won't lie."

Anaira stared at him for another few seconds.

Then suddenly burst into tears again.

"BUT ONE MONTH IS VERY MUCHLY."

Virat closed his eyes briefly.

Very muchly.

God.

His heart genuinely felt destroyed.

Anushka rubbed his shoulder softly because she could literally see him struggling to hold himself together.

Virat Kohli had handled stadium pressure.Media storms.Career failures.Public scrutiny.

But one crying little girl saying "very muchly" while begging him not to leave?

That nearly broke him.

-

A soft knock interrupted the moment.

Aarav peeked inside sleepily.

He had clearly just woken up.

"What happened?"

Then he saw Anaira crying in Virat's lap and immediately understood.

"Oh."

Anaira looked at him instantly.

"Bhaiya tell Papa no go."

Aarav sighed softly and walked closer.

"Nairuu..."

"No! Tell!"

Aarav sat beside her carefully.

"Papa has matches."

"I DON'T LIKE MATCHES."

Virat actually laughed weakly through the emotional ache in his chest.

Aarav smirked faintly.

"Damn. Cricket career ended."

Anaira glared tearfully."Not funny."

Aarav softened immediately then.

He gently fixed her messy hair away from her face.

"Listen," he said quietly. "He always comes back."

Anaira looked unconvinced.

Aarav pointed at Virat seriously."He's obsessed with this house. Trust me."

That got the tiniest watery laugh from her.

Tiny.

But enough.

Virat looked at Aarav briefly.

Grateful.

-

Forty minutes later, security downstairs was already waiting.

Virat's manager had called twice.

They were running late.

But Virat physically couldn't make himself stand up properly because Anaira still clung to him like letting go would make him disappear forever.

She sat in his lap silently now.

Occasionally sniffing.

Exhausted from crying.

Virat kissed the top of her head gently.

"I really have to go now, baby."

Immediate tears again.

"No."

Virat closed his eyes briefly.

God.

Anushka finally stepped in softly.

"Nairuu... Papa will miss his flight."

Anaira looked personally betrayed by the sentence.

"Then miss it."

Aarav snorted unexpectedly from the corner.

Virat laughed helplessly under his breath.

"You and your solutions."

Anaira wrapped her arms tighter around his neck.

Virat finally stood up while carrying her.

She immediately buried her face into his shoulder again.

Like the airport day.

Like she always did when overwhelmed.

He walked downstairs slowly with her still attached to him.

Security immediately looked away respectfully.

Even the staff had softened around her by now.

Because it was impossible not to.

Virat stopped near the main door.

Anaira still refused to look up.

"Baby..."

"No."

"I need a goodbye hug properly."

"You already have."

Virat almost smiled painfully.

Then quietly-

"You know what?"

Anaira sniffled.

"What?"

"I think rabbit will miss me too."

A stunned silence.

Then Anaira looked up instantly, offended through tears.

"NO. rabbit annoying."

Aarav burst out laughing again.

Even Anushka laughed helplessly.

Virat grinned finally.

"There's my girl."

Anaira's lips wobbled again immediately afterward though.

Because she remembered he was still leaving.

Virat kissed her forehead slowly.

Then whispered near her hair-

"I'll always come back to you. Understand?"

That finally made her go quiet.

Not fully okay.

Just listening.

Virat gently placed her into Anushka's arms.

Anaira instantly started crying again softly.

Tiny broken sounds against Anushka's shoulder.

And Virat genuinely had to look away for one second.

Because his chest hurt too much.

Aarav noticed immediately.

For the first time in his life-

he saw his father struggle to leave.

Virat came back from practice exhausted.

The test series had only been going on for a week and he already missed home too much.

Missed Anushka.Missed Aarav's constant sarcasm.Missed hearing tiny footsteps running randomly through the house.

Most importantly-

he missed Anaira.

Their video calls happened every day exactly like he promised, but somehow they made him miss her more.

Especially because she had developed this habit now-

every night before sleeping she would ask,

"You coming tomorrow?"

And every single time, Virat's chest hurt a little answering no.

-

That evening, after practice, Virat was scrolling absentmindedly through a small gift store inside the hotel lobby.

Mostly looking for chocolates for Aarav.

Maybe skincare or candles for Anushka.

Normal things.

Then suddenly-

he froze.

On one shelf sat an extremely grumpy-looking plushie.

Big eyebrows.Tiny angry expression.Folded plush arms.

Virat stared at it for three whole seconds.

Then immediately laughed under his breath.

"Rambhgir."

The shopkeeper looked confused.

Virat picked up the plushie instantly.

Because somehow-

it genuinely looked like the exact kind of stuffed toy Anaira would point at and confidently call Rambhgir again.

And God, he could already imagine her reaction.

So naturally-

he bought it immediately.

-

That night during the video call, Anaira answered from Anushka's phone with messy hair and toothpaste foam still at the corner of her mouth.

Virat sighed dramatically.

"You're speaking to the Indian cricket team looking like this?"

Anaira gasped.

"You seeing toothpaste?!"

"Yes."

She immediately wiped her mouth aggressively with her sleeve.

Anushka's horrified voice came from somewhere behind her-

"ANAIRA!"

Virat burst out laughing.

Anaira ignored it completely.

Then suddenly narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"You smiling too muchly."

Virat leaned back on the hotel bed innocently."Can't smile?"

"No. Suspicious."

Virat laughed again.

God, he missed this child.

Then he slowly lifted the plushie into the camera frame.

Anaira froze instantly.

Her eyes widened so much it nearly killed him.

"...RAMBHGIR?!"

Virat lost it laughing.

Actually laughing properly after days.

"Yes."

Anaira screamed so loudly Anushka rushed into frame immediately.

"What happened?!"

Anaira pointed violently at the screen.

"PAPA FOUND RAMBHGIR."

Anushka saw the plushie and immediately covered her face laughing.

"Oh my God."

Virat grinned proudly."He literally looks like her version of Gambhir."

Anaira looked deeply emotional already.

"Is he angry plushie?"

"Very angry plushie."

"I want him."

"You'll get him when Papa comes home."

Anaira immediately hugged the phone to her chest dramatically.

"Thank you Rambhgir."

Virat laughed so hard he nearly dropped the phone.

-

Later that night after the call ended, Virat stayed awake longer than usual.

Still smiling slightly thinking about her reaction.

And somehow that brought back the memory of the very first time she had said it.

The original Rambhgir incident.

-

FLASHBACK

It had been one of her quieter days.

Around a week after she first arrived.

Anaira still barely moved around the house comfortably back then.

She mostly stayed close to Anushka.

Or sat silently observing things with those huge doe eyes.

That afternoon, Virat had come home from practice early and found her sitting alone in the living room carpet surrounded by old BCCI magazines.

Apparently Aarav had dumped the stack there while cleaning shelves.

Anaira was flipping through them seriously like she was studying for an exam.

Virat sat beside her casually.

"What are you doing?"

Anaira held up one magazine proudly.

"Learning cricket peoples."

Virat smiled faintly."Dangerous decision."

Anaira ignored him completely and continued flipping pages.

Then suddenly she stopped.

Stared at one photo very seriously.

Her eyebrows squished together in concentration.

Virat leaned slightly to see.

Gautam Gambhir.

Anaira sounded the word out slowly with full confidence.

"Ram...bh...gir."

Virat blinked.

"What?"

Anaira pointed at the magazine again.

"Rambhgir."

Virat genuinely thought he heard wrong.

"That says Gambhir."

Anaira looked unconvinced.

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

Virat was already trying not to laugh.

"Baby, it's GAM-bhir."

Anaira frowned harder trying again.

"Gaaam..."

Tiny pause.

"...Rambhgir."

Virat actually choked laughing.

Like full shoulders shaking laughing.

Anaira looked offended immediately.

"What?!"

By then Aarav had walked downstairs halfway through the chaos.

"What happened?"

Virat couldn't even answer properly.

He just shoved the magazine toward him laughing helplessly.

Aarav looked at the page.Then at Anaira.

"Did you just call Gambhir Rambhgir?"

Anaira crossed her arms stubbornly.

"That's what written."

"No it is NOT."

"Is too."

Anushka walked in next and immediately found three people arguing over Gautam Gambhir's surname.

"What is happening here?"

Aarav pointed at Anaira dramatically.

"She renamed Gambhir."

Anaira got defensive instantly.

"Names are difficultly!"

Virat sat there laughing with his head in his hands while Anaira kept trying to justify herself.

And somehow-

that became it.

From that day onward, Gautam Gambhir unofficially became Rambhgir in the Kohli house.

Even the staff accidentally started calling the plushie that later.

And every single time Anaira confidently said "Rambhgir," the entire house softened around her all over again.