Chapter Text
Max had done it. All the hard work had finally paid off. He was finally getting to race in Formula 1 just like his father had done. And at just 17 years old. He was ecstatic to finally make it into the big leagues at such a young age. But, he was also terrified at the same time. This was his first time competing in an all-Alpha-dominated sport. Sure, his karting days had also been filled with mostly alphas as well, but none of them had been presenting at the time, so there wasn't really much of a concern. But he was a late bloomer. His father had said it was common for the Verstappen family to be late bloomers when it came to their secondary gender. Everyone on the karting track had presented at 15, while he had presented when he was 17.
~~~
Boy, that had been a very rough day for Max. His father had expected him to be an alpha like all the males in his family. And he really hoped he would be to make his father proud. But, on the day he turned 17, was the day he became a disgrace in his father's eyes. He had woken up feeling warm and sweaty, his clothes clinging to him. He had reached to feel the ache in his neck to find his newly developed scent gland, and he quickly sat up and headed to the bathroom to check for any more changes before his father found him. He wanted to make sure he was definitely presenting as an alpha before he went to face him. He knew what to look out for since it had been drilled into him by schools and his father.
So, when he had checked all of his body for the signs of an alpha, his heart sank. All the changes he had pointed towards the one secondary gender he did not want to be.
...Omega...
He could've lived with being a beta. His father would've just been disappointed, but he could live with it. But, Omega? Well, he was about to find out when he heard the shout of his name from downstairs. He quickly showered and got changed, making his way downstairs as fast as he could so he wouldn't get punished for making his father wait. He really did not want to skip breakfast again if it was another day of training. But as he approached the dining room, he could sense that something was wrong. His new hypersensitive nose could smell the scent of an incredibly angry alpha, and that was the only warning he got before his father appeared before him, grabbing his shirt and slamming him against the wall.
"A fucking omega?! You fucking presented as that?!" Jos snapped, slamming him against the wall once again.
Pain bloomed in his upper back and head from the aggressive slams, but he didn't wince or make a sound. He already was conditioned not to do that. So many beatings do that to a child that earns more punishment by doing so. He remained silent as he was then tossed onto the floor.
"Just when I thought you couldn't be more of a disgrace! Now, all you will ever be is a fucking slut for your competitors!" Jos shouted as he kicked his son in the ribs.
It wasn't enough to break them, but it had been sufficient to knock the air out of his lungs. He gasped but made no other sounds. He couldn't really hear what his father was screaming at him over the sound of his gasps and the ringing from the two hits to his head. Though he soon noticed when he felt the tight grip in his hair that pulled him up to his feet.
"I do not give a shit about the rules of racing and how you bitches ain't allowed to compete! We are putting you on blockers, you understand?!" Jos shouted in his son's face.
"Yes, father," Max responded, trying not to cry. Trying to will away the tears that were attempting to form.
He would not break.
And a few hours later, he was sitting in the doctor's office with his father, who demanded that he get both the scent blockers and the heat blockers. He couldn't even read up on the risks of taking them. He wasn't classed as an adult yet, so his father could decide for him.
~~~
And now here he was, about to compete in his first-ever F1 race with Toro Rosso. He had only been on the blockers for a few months now, but he was still wary. What if they could smell that he was an omega? What if they could tell he was on blockers? He tried to remember what his father had drilled into him over the past few months on how to act like an alpha. He fixed his posture and held his head up higher as he walked through the paddock alongside his father. He needed to act confident so people would see he was an alpha like the rest of them.
Free practice was yesterday, and he got to truly try out the Toro Rosso car. It was good; he hadn't performed better than his teammate, but the car felt smooth. Hell, they even performed better than Red Bull yesterday. But that was free practice. It wasn't actually the true results. That would be today in qualifying. He needed to do well to have a shot at scoring points tomorrow.
He sat on the wall of the garage, watching the mechanics prepare the car for qualifying. He wasn't just watching his own team, but the others around their garage as well. He'd always had a fascination with the way the cars were constructed and maintained. Maybe if he weren't fully forced into racing (He likely still would've done it as a hobby if it wasn't for his father), he would've likely tried his hand at being a mechanic.
One thing he was glad to still have was his overly sensitive nose. He could sense an alpha approaching him and turned his head towards his teammate, Carlos Sainz. They were both debuting today.
"Hey Max! You excited for qualifying today?" The Spaniard asked with a grin on his face.
"Oh yeah. Finally get to see what both of us can do." Max said, trying to keep his voice from shaking from being so close to an alpha that wasn't his father.
"Yeah! It'll be good to see how both of our debuts go." Carlos added, sitting next to Max. "Why are you sitting out here anyway?"
"Just needed to clear my head. And I like watching the mechanics work anyway. Thought it was a good idea before qualifying." Max responded, fiddling with his gloves.
"It is nerve-racking, isn't it? Especially for you. I don't mean that in a bad way, but you're young compared to me and the other rookies on the grid." Carlos said, looking at their cars.
"I'm worried about proving that I am meant to be here. That they didn't make a mistake signing me on so young and having not competed in F2." Max admitted, then realised he had slipped up by being honest.
Alphas are not in tune with their emotions like this.
Stupid! Stupid! Stu-
"Hey. I'm sure you'll do fine. We all start somewhere." Carlos said as he jumped to his feet. "We should probably get ready. Qualifying is about to start." He said, patting Max's shoulder before he headed off to his car.
Max raised an eyebrow as Sainz walked away. Why wasn't he laughed at for being honest with how he felt? His father said Alphas were expected to be confident. To not say how they actually felt. But that hadn't been the case. Maybe it was because Sainz was a young alpha and still learning things himself. He could not slip up like that again in front of older alphas in the grid.
He needed to assert his dominance.
He slid himself off the wall, putting on his balaclava and helmet as he headed towards his car. Once he got into that car there was no turning back.
He was now an F1 driver.
The first known Omega F1 driver