Warnings: OmegaVerse, Previous Slash (Jeff Hardy/CM Punk).

Two jobs. One during the day, one at night. Any other work when he can find it. The help of friends for babysitting after school, sometimes over night too. Welfare where he can, when he has time to fill out the forms, and face the humiliation. Thankfully it's been a long time since they were in a shelter, or relying on a food bank, but all it'd take is one late check, one late payment on one of the many bills, and everything would collapse again.

When Phil was young, still in high school he'd fallen in love with the alpha he thought was his mate. A whirlwind romance that had made promises of a life far from the mess he'd been born into. Omegas position and rights are changing for the better, but when Phil had been growing up being an omega wasn't exactly something to be proud of. His parents already hadn't exactly been delighted. They'd wanted alphas, and even one omega wasn't something they were pleased with. Jeff had come like a bolt of lightning into Phil's world. He as exotic, dramatic, and exciting. A guitar player in a band, at the time, Jeff had seduced young Phil so easily. He made promises of freedom, and adventure. He promised a whole world beyond the bleak little suburb Phil lived in. At the time, Phil had thought he was bonded. He'd truly thought he was one of the lucky ones who met their mate early, and got to live the dream. They'd gotten married in the spring. A beautiful wedding down in Jeff's home state. They'd moved down there as soon as Phil turned sixteen, dropping out of high school, convinced that love would be enough to survive on. Phil wound up working in the town diner, and Jeff took a job working in a local bar to supplement the small income his band made touring. For a while it was wonderful. Jeff would go on tour with his band, but he'd always take Phil with him when he could. He'd be so proud to show Phil off, and Phil was so enamoured with the world he'd fallen into that he didn't think about how uncomfortable it made him to be shown off like a prize.

It started, as these things often do, small. Jeff would have a beer, and then be loud and hilarious for a few hours, or he'd have a joint, and then be mellow and sweet for a few hours. Things progressed though. From cannabis Jeff upgraded. He went up the list of narcotics, trying each one he encountered. Cocaine became his favourite though. He'd become so confident on it, his sweet nature hidden behind chemical bravado. He'd be so different on coke, that Phil would feel like he was with a different alpha. It'd taken around three months of Jeff using coke on the road regularly for Phil to stop going with him. Three months had been when the incident occurred. That had been the moment Phil had realise that perhaps he'd been wrong, that perhaps Jeff wasn't his mate. He doesn't like thinking about the incident, even now years later it still makes him want to break down.

Phil hadn't wanted to leave Jeff though. His parents had told him he was making a mistake getting married so young. His brother and friends had all said the same thing, and Phil wanted to prove them wrong. He'd been young when he'd gotten married, but he'd married the right alpha. They were going to be happy, and the best way to be happy was to have a baby. The cocaine made Jeff crave sex in a way alcohol or cannabis never did. When he was home Phil would be lucky to stay dressed for more than five minutes, so getting pregnant hadn't been too difficult. Jeff was never really around, so when he noticed Phil was expecting a baby it was too late for an abortion, but that wouldn't have been on the cards as Jeff had been ecstatic at the news. He managed, for a few years at least, to pull himself together. He got a steady job, and for the first three years of young Seth's life Jeff had been a wonderful father.

Around Seth's third birthday Jeff fell apart once more. This time the breakdown was different. Drugs again played their part, but this time Jeff was tied down to a job. He couldn't go roaming the country to satiate his desires. For nearly two years Phil endured. On good days, Jeff was the best alpha Phil could hope for, but on the bad days Phil feared for his life. Three days after Seth's fifth birthday, and two after Jeff had beaten Phil unconscious, the police knocked on the door to their trailer. They'd come with a search warrant. Phil had collected Seth to him, and made his decision as an officer escorted them to a cruiser bound for the police station. Phil was interviewed, and released on the basis he knew nothing about what Jeff had gotten himself into.

That was all ten years, and a lifetime ago now. Seth's fifteenth birthday is coming up soon. It's debateable whether fifteen is a big birthday, but for Phil it feels like a landmark. He'd been fifteen when he'd met Jeff. At fifteen his whole life had started on down the path he's been trying to walk back up since. He would change so many things if he could, but there's one he'd never change. His son is the best thing anyone has ever given him. Seth is smart, quick-witted, and independent. He's the combination of all the best traits of Jeff and Phil, though Phil will admit that his son has many of his terrible personality traits. Seth like his papa is stubborn, quick to anger, sarcastic, and fond of bearing grudges. Phil doesn't want to think about Seth having any of Jeff's many bad personality traits so he doesn't look for them. He worries about it, but there's nothing he can do, so all he does is worry.

"Papa, you look terrible." Seth's a morning person. Infuriatingly a morning person. Phil's no idea if he is or isn't. It doesn't matter what time of day it is, he's always tired. Two jobs, and a teenaged omega that's going through the phase of not wanting to take his heat suppressants because of the chemicals is exhausting. Worry and work that is what Phil's life has become.

"What you want for breakfast, kiddo?" Phil usually ignores Seth's snide comments, if he doesn't they'll end up fighting. It had been worse last year when they were in a smaller apartment with only one bedroom. It'd been hard living in that grim little place, but thankfully Phil had managed to save enough to put a deposit down on their current apartment, one with two bedrooms and an actual kitchen instead of a hot plate in a corner beside a fridge that buzzed like a swarm of angry bees. He rather misses the old fridge, at least then he had an excuse for why he wasn't sleeping when Seth asked. Now he says it's because of work. Seth doesn't need to know how much his papa worries.

"Sit down. I made eggs." Seth nudges one of the two chairs at the table with his foot. Phil shakes his head and makes a quick cup of coffee. Eventually he takes a seat, drinking his coffee as quickly as he can.

"You're growing up so fast." Seth looks at him and Phil shakes his head. He is growing up fast, far too fast, and Phil's worried that he's done a terrible job of raising him. He's tried his best, but he can't say for sure that he's been a good papa. There have been so many times over the years where Seth's complained that he's a freak because he doesn't have two parents. All his friends' parents have their mates, all the alphas and all the omegas nicely paired up, raising their children without problems, and then there's Seth. Seth moving from crumby apartment to crumby apartment, with only his single omega papa, who's working two jobs to keep them housed and fed. Seth who's been denied the luxuries of his friends because his papa can't provide them. Phil sighs, and scrubs at his eyes. Seth's hand rubs over his hair once, dragging Phil's attention from his thoughts.

"Eat your eggs, papa." Seth smiles slightly as he sets a plate of food down on the table. "So... My birthday's coming up."

"Uh-huh." Phil's mechanically shovelling food into his mouth, trying to avoid thinking about anything but spending a quiet moment with his son. It's so rare he gets a chance to spend any time with Seth these days. He's either working overtime to pay for the more expensive things Seth wants, or Seth himself is off busy having his own life.

"And I was thinking about what I want. Before you say anything, I know money's tight. It's always tight. If only you'd stayed with dad." Seth hisses that last part so bitterly. The truth of what happened between Phil and Jeff isn't something Seth knows. He decided long ago that not telling Seth anything would be better than telling him the truth. Phil isn't as hungry as he once was; his stomach is filled with his worries, leaving no room for food.

"Seth, lock the door when you leave for school." Phil pushes away from the table, heading for the door to pull his shoes on. Seth bounces to his feet, following along behind him.

"Papa... I... Maybe if you'd tell me what-"

"We're not having this conversation, not now." Phil cuts in, forcing a smile to his face. The last thing he wants to do is tell Seth anything about his father. It's better for all three of them for there to be no contact. Jeff has made it abundantly clear that he doesn't care about his son. He's married to another omega, and they have their own family to worry about. Long ago Jeff legally signed his way out of Seth's life, and in Phil's opinion that's the best thing Jeff could have done for him. "I'm going to be late for work."

"Will you back for dinner?" Seth sounds hopeful, but Phil shakes his head. The cleaning company, which makes up his second job, has him going to a different office building on the other side of the city tonight, so he won't have time to stop in at home for something to eat.

"Head to your Uncle Colt's, he'll be happy to see you." Phil pulls his son into a hug, and presses a kiss to his hair. "I'll be back late tonight, so-"

"Lock the door. I know the drill, papa." Seth squirms, glowering up at Phil. His ire falls away quickly though. He looks painfully guilty for a second. Phil kisses his hair once more, and tries to pull away. "Have a nice day, papa." Seth tightens the hug, his head pressing firmly against Phil's chest. "I might see if Uncle Colt will let me stay over."

"I'll ask him." Phil mutters, his arms wrapped tightly around his son. There are few people he trusts to love his son as much as he does, but the goofball omega he met when he came back to Chicago is one of them. "Have a fun at school." Seth rolls his eyes when Phil steps away from him.

"I can hear the lecture in your head. Get to work before they fire you." Seth laughs. Phil swats at his ear, purposefully missing. Seth barking another laugh is the last thing Phil hears as he closes their apartment door behind him.

His day job is working in a diner. The kind of place where the owner tries to take a cut of your tips. It's not the sort of work Phil enjoys, but he's done it for so long that he can do it in his sleep. It takes next to no effort to be nice to the customers, and to maximise his potential tip earnings. His regulars know him by name, and he knows their orders without even asking. His diner shift is from 8am to 5pm. It usually affords him an hour or so at home with Seth before he has to get to his second job, but the office block he's cleaning tonight is downtown. With the traffic, and Phil's reliance on public transport it'll take him far longer to get there than the usual office building he cleans.

He makes it to the office building with all of five minutes to spare. The night guard looks at him dismissively, but Phil's used to that. He knows that the old alpha probably thinks he's an immigrant stealing a job from a hard-working American, and almost as bad as that, he's an omega, the scent he emits gives that away. No matter how good suppressants have gotten over the years, there seems to be nothing that can be done to mask the scent of a fertile omega , and omegas should be at home caring for their children.

Seth's staying with me tonight? - Colt

Phil curses under his breath as he reads that message, realising he'd forgotten to ask his friend that particular favour.

Do you mind? - sent

Nah, of course not! He's good with the little ones! - Colt

Colt's little ones are terrors. Not that he actually has any little ones of his own; rather he works in a care home for children. Most of his charges this year are young, under five. Phil avoids going, because seeing all those kids makes him feel broody, and the last thing he needs is to have another kid.

Thanks Colt. - sent

Any time! Get some rest tonight! - Colt

Phil stuffs his phone back in his pocket, and smothers a yawn with his hand. Getting some rest would be the best thing he could do, but it's not likely. He'll finish cleaning this office as quickly as he can, then he'll go home, and worry over how he's going to pay for Seth's birthday present. He's always worried about money. Once he'd worried over Seth's future, his distant future, but he's given up worrying over Seth's college fund. Phil had sat Seth down last year, and explained the depth of their financial problems. It turns out that a single parent omega who didn't even graduate high school can't make enough money to put their kid through college, no matter how hard they work. Phil's worries are more focused on the here and now, on keeping them fed and housed, everything else has to be shunted away as far as it can be.

The offices he's cleaning are vast, taking up three floors of the building, and many of them seem to still be occupied. Phil cleans the open office spaces first. Thankfully many of the closed offices empty out as he works. The people working in them spare him vague glances, dismissing him with nothing more than a look. Finally there's only one office still occupied. The largest office at the back of the top floor. Phil hovers nervously outside of it. There are voices drifting out from behind the closed door. One loud and animated, the other lower and gruffer.

"Well, just don't do anything dumb for a while then, Brock." The door opens, and a rotund alpha in a crisp suit appears. He claps a hand on the shoulder of the alpha who exits the office into the corridor. This alpha is huge. Tall, broad, and intimidating. He looks more out of place in this office building than Phil. He laughs at the fat alpha in a suit, and breezes past Phil without a backward glance. "You're waiting to clean?" The fat alpha is the first person to talk to Phil since he left the diner, and when Phil tries to talk his voice comes out as a vague croak.

"Yeah." He forces a smile to his lips, and the fat alpha nods, heading back inside his office. "Should I clean around you, or would you like me to wait?"

"Shouldn't you be at home?" The fat man's sat down behind his desk, his fingers clattering over his keyboard. Phil sucks his bottom lip into his mouth considering how to answer that question. "A pretty little omega shouldn't be out working so late at night." The fat alpha is still typing, not looking at Phil.

"I..." Phil has no idea how to respond to that. "Do you want me to wait for you to finish?" He asks his question once more hoping for an answer. The fat alpha looks at him thoughtfully.

"Clean around me, then get on home to your family." The fat alpha resumes working. Phil nods vaguely, and leaves the office to go and grab his cleaning supplies. Phil's almost finished cleaning the office when he notices that the sound of typing has stopped. He chances a look over that the fat man. He's rubbing at his eyes, and scowling down at his phone. "Isn't your family harassing you over working so late too?" He laughs suddenly. Phil shakes his head in response. The fat alpha raises an eyebrow, and Phil supposes that there's no harm in actually talking to the fat man.

"My son's staying with his uncle." Phil finishes wiping the last surface down, and loads the cleaning supplies back into their basket.

"Not his father?" The fat alpha asks. Phil sighs, and braces himself for whatever will come next.

"His father is out of the picture." This is usually the moment where people make all kinds of snap judgements about him. He's been called everything from a home-wrecker to a whore depending on what people assume were the circumstances of Seth's birth.

"Ah... I'm in a similar position. Although, I confess I always thought it was easier to be a single omega parent... You hear on the news how you get all the funding." The fat alpha rests his chin in his hand as he looks at Phil.

"I think the funding skipped me over." Phil mutters. "I need to vacuum in here... Do you mind?" The fat alpha shakes his head, and resumes typing, leaving Phil to finish up his work.

"My name is Paul, by the way." The fat alpha calls out as Phil's leaving his office.

"Phil. It was nice to meet you, Paul." Phil hopes he managed to hide how tired he is in that little comment. He's so tired he feels like he could fall asleep right where he's standing.

"C'mon, you know you wanna take this fat knot, baby!" The third catcaller of Phil's walk home is no more creative than the first. The bus stops a few blocks from his apartment, and whilst it's not a long walk, it's plenty of time for asshole alphas to make themselves known. He supposes he should start considering trying to find a place in a nice area. It would require him taking on another job, and his weekends are pretty much free.

"Are the three guys following you friends of yours?" A voice jolts Phil from his thoughts. The scent of an alpha thick in the air beside him suddenly. Phil turns to look at him. Tall, slender though muscular, his hair is slicked back neatly, the colour difficult to pick out in the street lights.

"No..." Phil says softly, and the alpha nods slightly, his arm coming around Phil's shoulders. "Excuse me." He tenses up under the alpha's arm.

"Relax." The alpha laughs. "Lemme be a white knight, okay?" He chuckles again, and flashes a grin at Phil that makes his dimples obvious. Phil nods dumbly, and walks with the alpha. "So, which building is yours?"

"I don't-"

"This one's mine." The alpha gestures to the building Phil lives in.

"Which floor?" Phil asks softly. He's hoping this alpha is just kind hearted and happens to live in the same building, not some crazed stalker.

"Fifth." The alpha answers without question, but with a healthy dose of confusion in his voice. "Why?"

"This is my building... I'm on the fourth floor." Phil glances up at the alpha.

"No way. Coincidence city... I wonder why I've never seen you around." The alpha opens the front door, and trickle of relief fills Phil. He's at least no lying about living in the building. He takes his arm back from around Phil's shoulders once the door's closed behind them. "You know you shouldn't be out walking so late... It's not safe for omegas." Phil nods absently, and starts opening his mail box. He's expecting this alpha to launch into a familiar spiel about how omegas need to take better precautions to ensure their own safety. It never seems to occur to them to tell other alphas not to harass omegas. He's fairly surprised when the alpha says nothing, instead he seems to be collecting his mail from the boxes as well.

"Thank you for your help." Phil's hoping that he can slink away from this alpha without too much more interaction. He's tired, and now that they're indoors Phil realises he's seen this young alpha before. He's got that bad boy vibe that Phil has always had a soft spot for, but Phil has no interest in getting involved with anyone, no matter how much they pique his interest.

"You're welcome." The alpha doesn't look up from reading his mail. Phil takes the opportunity to head over to the elevator. "I'm Dean, and in case you're interested I put my number in your pocket." The alpha looks up at Phil when the elevator dings. Phil's hand dives into his pocket and pulls out a scrap of paper with some numbers written on it. "Any time you want a drink, or someone to walk you home, you gimme a call."

So this one's a little different for me... Please note that warnings will be added as the story proceeds. I don't want to add them all just yet. ;)

If you'd like to see your handle in italics please do review, and you can!

Next update - 2016/07/09