Chapter Text
Borussia dortmund, late 2021.
The changing room was unusually quiet.
Training had run late, and everyone else had already headed home. The only sounds left were the occasional hum of the lights and drip of water from the showers.
Jude stood by his locker, pulling a clean shirt over one arm.
His excuse for being so late was that he’d stayed behind to check the scores from the previous game. Nothing major.
Jude lifted his shirt, about to pull it over his head, when a scent hit him without warning. It was so thick it stole the air from his lungs.
Jude froze.
His eyes widened.
“…No.”
He slowly turned around, his shirt still hovering in the same position.
There, across the aisle of lockers, stood Erling. Erling Haaland. An alpha.
Erling’s hand was braced against the locker door. His forehead resting against the cool metal. His chest rose and fell in uneven breaths as he struggled to steady himself.
Every exhale carried another wave of powerful alpha pheromones.
He looked like he was fighting his own body.
Jude’s stomach dropped.
“A rut..?”
His voice barely came out as a whisper.
“For fuck’s sake.”
Instinct screamed at him to leave.
Fast.
He quickly snatched up his clothes and bag before turning on his heel for the door.
But before he could.
A hand closed around his wrist.
Jude stopped dead. His chest tightened. Slowly, he looked back.
Erling’s eyes met his. They were unfocused, conflicted, almost pleading.
It looked as though Erling was forcing every ounce of control he had into simply standing still.
His grip trembled.
“Hey…” he rasped.
Jude took a cautious half-step back.
“Erling… you need to—”
Erling stumbled forward, driven more by instinct than intent. Jude’s back hit the row of lockers with a dull clang as Erling caught himself, one hand pressing against the metal beside him.
They were suddenly far too close.
Jude knew this was bad. So incredibly bad. An omega and an alpha this close together was already dangerous, especially during a rut.
One of the last things Jude remembers was begging Erling to let go, telling him that he wasn’t in the right mind.
While Erling kept repeating the same words.
“…I’m sorry… so sorry,”
But what stayed with Jude most was the intensity of that evening.
He could remember the exact feeling of Erling’s tongue, the way it brushed against the insides of his mouth. He could remember the thrusts, sloppy at first, but so precise at hitting the right spots. And he could remember the knot. How much it hurt, but how overwhelmingly good it felt.
Erling didn’t remember much from that day. The details were blurry, but he knew one thing for certain. He had found an omega. He knew he had his way with them, which makes him feel incredibly guilty.
Worst of all, he never found out who it was.
Then he left to join Manchester City.
4 years later.
The gentle sizzle of bacon filled the kitchen as Jude stood at the stove, tending to the breakfast with one hand while holding his phone to his ear with the other.
“What a scruffy player,” he laughed. “He’s turned into a proper meme now, hasn’t he?”
Declan’s voice crackled through the speaker, still insisting his team would’ve won if not for one questionable refereeing decision.
Jude rolled his eyes with a grin.
“At least you got 2nd place.”
“2nd means nothing to me,” Declan snickers.
Before Jude could tease him any further, a small voice piped up from behind him.
“Daddy?”
Jude turned, his smile softening instantly.
Sitting at the kitchen table was his almost 4 year old son. Lukas Bellingham.
Bright blonde hair framed his little face, his pale skin already carrying the faint golden tint of the summer sun. His big blue eyes looked up at Jude, his small legs swinging beneath the chair.
Jude couldn’t help but smile. “Sorry, Dec,” he said into the phone.
“I’ve got someone who’s a little more important than you waiting for breakfast.”
Declan chuckled.
“Tell the little man I said hi.”
“Will do, See you at training.” Jude said.
“Later,” Declan replied.
Jude ended the call before carrying a plate over to the table, setting it carefully in front of Lukas.
“There we go.”
Lukas beamed.
“Thank you, Daddy.”
“No problem, baby.” Jude ruffled his son’s hair gently.
“Eat up while I go and get ready, okay?”
“Okay!” Lukas smiled.
Jude smiled back before heading upstairs. He needed to pack their things before they left to meet the team and catch their flight.
At the airport.
The airport was calm, the private area reserved for the football players and staff.
Jude walked down the escalator, holding Lukas’s small hand in his own as they made their way over to where the team was waiting.
Lukas looked around curiously, taking in his surroundings while staying close to his dad.
A familiar voice called out.
“Jude.” Shouted Bukayo Saka, gesturing him over.
Jude looked up and smiled as he spotted Harry and Saka nearby.
“My boys!”
Both men greeted Lukas warmly, their faces lighting up when they saw him.
“There he is,” Harry said with a grin.
Lukas smiled shyly as Harry pulled him into a quick hug.
Jude smiled before greeting Harry with a hug of his own, the conversation soon shifting.
“So, what’s the plan with the kid?” Harry asked, glancing down at Lukas.
Jude shrugged slightly. “Manager said he can come and watch from the stadium seats. He’ll stay with staff during the match.”
The two nodded, but there was still a hint of concern.
“What about people seeing him?” Saka asked.
Jude’s expression softened as he looked down at Lukas. That was the one thing he worried about. Lukas had never been seen publicly. No pictures, no announcements. Most people didn’t even know he existed.
“It’ll be fine, honestly. It’s just us there anyway,” Jude said calmly.
“Yeah, I’ll speak to the staff and make sure nobody takes pictures,” Harry assured him.
Jude nodded, grateful to have such good friends who respected his decisions.
The three of them then headed over to the rest of the team, ready to board the plane.
The flight passed without any issues. Jude spent most of it entertaining Lukas and keeping him quiet, while the rest of the team relaxed around them.
The plane landed, and the England team began making their way off the aircraft.
Paparazzi were everywhere, cameras and phones pointed in every direction as the team made their way through the airport.
Jude snuggled Lukas tightly against his chest, a jacket covering him from view. Anthony walked beside him, positioning himself between Jude and the cameras whenever he could, blocking their attempts to get a clear shot.
Jude felt his nerves rising.
Every few seconds, he looked down at Lukas, making sure he was alright. The last thing he wanted was for his son to be exposed to the world before he was ready.
Then suddenly, a person with a camera stepped directly in front of him.
“Jude! Can we get a quick interview?” They shouted, pointing their camera towards the jacket in Jude’s arms.
The sudden movement caught him off guard. Jude froze, instinctively stepping back as the camera was pushed closer.
Before he could react, Anthony stepped forward, placing himself between them.
“Back up,” Anthony ordered firmly.
“Give him some space.”
The interviewer tried to continue, but Anthony didn’t move.
Harry quickly came over to help, joining Anthony as they created a path for Jude.
Jude didn’t wait around.
Holding Lukas closer, he walked away quickly, his only focus being getting his son somewhere safe.
The rest of the walk was uneasy.
With his squad by his side, Jude quickly made it onto the team bus and found a seat. Thankfully, the windows were tinted, meaning nobody outside could see through them.
Jude carefully moved the jacket slightly away from Lukas’s head, still keeping him covered enough to protect his privacy while allowing him to see his face.
“Excited?” Jude asked softly.
“Mhm,” Lukas muffled, as he rested against Jude’s chest.
Jude grinned faintly, cradling Lukas closer as he leaned back in his seat. He watched through the window as the bus doors closed, finally feeling some of the tension leave his body.
A moment later, Declan climbed onto the bus and took the seat beside him, sitting on the window side.
Once the bus began moving, Jude removed the jacket completely. Lukas settled onto his dad’s lap, his back pressed against Jude’s chest as he relaxed in his arms.
Declan glanced over at him.
“You okay? It was absolute chaos out there,”
Jude let out a slow breath, his hand absently smoothing Lukas’s hair.
“Yeah,” he murmured.
“Just don’t like crowds getting that close.”
Declan nodded. He understood better than most.
To the rest of the world, Jude Bellingham was just another footballer. The media had spent years assuming he was a beta, and Jude had never corrected them.
The truth was known by very few people.
Jude Bellingham was an omega. Daily suppressants kept his pheromones hidden, allowing the world to mistake him for a beta. Only his England teammates, the coaching staff, and a handful of people he trusted knew the truth.
It wasn’t something he was ashamed of. He simply valued the life he’d built, and he knew how quickly it could be torn apart if the truth became public.
It would reach Lukas, too.
And Jude would do anything to protect his son from that.