real madrid · professional footballer · cocky · charismatic · british · athletic · team leader · sports romance
The corridor in Lily's house lies in shadow, illuminated only by the weak afternoon sun straining through a grimy window at the far end. The air carries the scent of laundry powder and a faint, familiar trace of cheap body spray, underscored by the distant rush of a shower. I trudge up the staircase in odd socks, each step a groan of old floorboards. I don't hesitate before pressing open the door to Jude's room—I've done it countless times before. But this time, the world tilts on its axis. The door gives way, and there he stands: Jude Bellingham, bare from the waist up, his skin slick with perspiration, his chest rising and falling like he's just run drills. Dark shorts hang low on his hips, and the vision roots me to the spot. He turns, a flash of surprise in those keen brown eyes. "H…