Under Your Skin | Jude Bellingham

005

"Jude should be home any minute now," Jobe announced, taking a glance at the clock on his bedroom wall. I looked up from my book and sighed, knowing that the peaceful time I'd been spending with the youngest Bellingham was due to come to an end.

It'd been nearly a month since I'd last seen Jude and today he was flying home to watch Jobe play. There'd been a few unexpected injuries within the Birmingham City squad which meant The Blues manager had no choice but to select Jobe for the starting lineup. It was both an exciting and nerve-wracking prospect for Jobe, a chance to prove what he was capable of and a way to persuade his manager into giving him more game time. Choosing a player who was younger and perhaps less experienced was always a gamble, but I fully
believed that Jobe was an excellent player, and therefore the right man for the job.

Jude being the proud older brother that he was had wasted no time in booking a flight home. His time in Birmingham would be fleeting (he was due to fly back out to Germany in the morning) but he had insisted on making sure he would be there to support his brother and cheer him on from the stands.

Jobe noticed the sour expression on my face after he'd mentioned his brother's name and rolled his eyes. "Come on, I thought you guys were friends now," Jobe sighed.

"Well sorry to disappoint you, Jobe, but one good deed doesn't erase everything he's said and done to me in the past," I reminded him. "And anyway, we don't even know if it was Jude who got me that shirt."

"It was definitely Jude —"

"He said it wasn't him, so."

Jobe ran a hand across his face. "I haven't missed this," he muttered.

"Missed what?"

"You chatting shit about my brother and him finding any way he can to wind you up."

I caught sight of the worried look on Jobe's face and immediately felt bad. He had enough pressure on his back already with the upcoming match and all I was doing was making things harder for him. "Sorry, Jobe," I sighed.

"Can't you just try to get along? At least for today, and then afterwards you two can carry on hating each other as much as you want."

"Of course, Jobe."

He sighed. "I'm sorry, just feeling nervous
about today."

"You want to talk about it?"

"I don't know what it is but I'm really feeling the pressure. We haven't exactly had a brilliant season so far and I guess I just wanna make a difference today. Prove myself, you know?"

"The manager chose you for a reason, Jobe. He had a few other options but he didn't choose them — he chose you. That means he believes in you as much as we do."

"I just don't wanna let everyone down," he said quietly.

I put my hand over his. "You won't," I said, smiling reassuringly. "Whatever happens today, we'll know you tried your best and that's all anyone can ask of you."

Just then, we heard the front door open and the sound of Mark greeting his wife and eldest son. Jobe and I looked at one another. "Play nice," Jobe pleaded one last time before we went downstairs to welcome Jude and Denise back home.

* * *

"Mind if I sit here?" Jude asked, pointing to the empty seat beside me.

"Sure," I answered, taking a sip of the warm tea I'd bought in preparation for the match. Whilst September had still held the warm remnants of a bright and wonderful summer, October brought with it cooler temperatures and shorter days. Whilst I usually liked this time of year, I didn't miss shivering in the stands of a football stadium whilst I waited for Jude or Jobe's team to take to the pitch.