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Missing Piece

Chapter 9

Notes:

This was originally going to be a kind of preamble for a longer and more "action packed" chapter 9, but then is just sort of became it's own fun little thing, so... 🙃 (I realised while writing this that like 90% of this fic is just Midge and Lenny talking to each other, but in my defence, I write what I like to read! 😭)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

"Ugh, I feel like I'm about to explode," Midge bemoaned as she walked out of the bathroom, having finished double checking her hair and makeup in the mirror with its superior lighting.

Lenny looked up at her from his seated position on their bed as he finished tying his shoes. "You look really beautiful," he told her truthfully.

"Thank you," Midge accepted warmly as she smoothed her emerald green satin dress. "I do like this dress."

"Me too," Lenny agreed. "Although, you obviously look better with no clothes on at all."

"Obviously," Midge added drolly. "Heels though," she bemoaned looking at her feet. "I miss heels. I dreamt about shoe shopping at Bendel's last night."

"As if that's not a regular occurrence with you," Lenny mocked, earning a stern look from his wife. "But as you know," he added with more affection, "I think you look very cute in flats."

Midge smiled, although she remained unconvinced. "Thank you."

"You sure you feel up to going to this thing at the Button Club?" he asked her for what, by Midge's count, was the third time that day.

"As I said, I'm fine," Midge insisted. "I'm pregnant, not sick."

"Yes, I am very much aware of that," Lenny told her flatly, having heard that phrase all too frequently in recent months. "But you're not just pregnant, you're really, really pregnant. Like, due to give birth in less than two weeks pregnant."

"I'll be fine," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "It's not like we're going to the other side of the world."

"That is true," he agreed, standing from the bed and placing his hands gently on her shoulders before he continued. "But if you want to leave early, just say and we'll go."

"I will remember that," Midge told him, warmed by the sweetness of his concern for her.

"Actually," Lenny began, left eyebrow cocked, "I think I might be the one calling in that favor since I'm going to be forced to spend the evening with Joel."

Midge sighed. "I know you don't really want to go, but it's New Year's Eve…"

"That's the other thing: You are aware that we are Jewish?"

Midge rolled her eyes. "It's a big night for the club, so Archie and Imogene will be there and I promised her that I'd come. Plus, it's a big place, Joel will be busy."

"I hope you're right," Lenny answered skeptically.

Midge leaned in and kissed him briefly. "You never know," she said as she removed the traces of her red lipstick from his mouth with a wipe of her thumb, "you might actually have a good time."

"Miracles may happen."


"You sure you're alright?" Lenny asked Midge after he came back from refreshing their drinks at the bar for the third time. She had been unusually quiet and sitting in the same spot for a while now.

"Just a little tired," she said with a slightly uncomfortable smile. "Resting my feet," she added more chipperly, her demeanor brightening.

Lenny frowned in concern, sure she was masking something. "If you're tired, we can go-"

"We are not leaving now, it's almost midnight."

"If you're sure…"

"I'm sure," Midge insisted.

"Hmm, fine," Lenny reluctantly accepted.

New Year's Eve at the Button Club was, much to Lenny's surprise, actually quite fun. The band were great and the drinks flowed aplenty, and even Imogene - someone he had never really gelled with - somehow seemed easier to get along with in this environment. But best of all, he had only seen Joel in the periphery except to exchange a terse "hello".

"You know," Lenny began sheepishly after taking a sip of his martini, "I actually am having a pretty good time."

Midge grinned. "So miracles really do happen. Forget what I said about staying, I've got to go right now and inform the rabbi that Lenny Bruce has finally found God."

"I was thinking more of the neighborhood priest," he said with a wave of his hand as he lit a cigarette. "because I do like the idea of having a snack and alcohol during my enforced weekly guilt trip. Plus"–he took a drag and exhaled dramatically, waving the cigarette in his hand–"Sundays are just so much more convenient."

Midge laughed, cupping his jaw with one hand and pulling him in a little closer to place a kiss there.

"Oh, so me being religious does it for you, huh?" Lenny joked with a grin.

"Oh, absolutely," she agreed. "I've always wanted to corrupt a man of God," she continued as she leant in to kiss him more lingeringly on the lips, only for the spell to be broken with the sound of someone attempting to gain their attention with the clearing of their throat.

"I umm…" Joel said as he stood looking down at the couple, their faces still close together. "I think you left this at the bar," he continued as he held a wallet out towards Lenny.

"Oh, yeah," Lenny accepted, shaking his head slightly. "Thanks," he added, his tone faltering, as Joel handed it to him.

"No worries," Joel offered before turning to walk away.

Lenny and Midge just looked at each other for a moment, Midge slightly open-mouthed and unsure what to say, only to be interrupted by Imogene before she had a chance to form her words.

"Midge," she called as she grabbed her friend's hand and - with Lenny's assistance - helped her to her feet. "It's time for the countdown."

"C'mon," Midge encouraged Lenny as she held out her hand for him to join them. "You've got to do the countdown."

"Alright," he agreed with only minor resistance, taking one last drag from his cigarette before stubbing it out.

"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six…" echoed the voices of the patrons throughout the club as the final seconds of 1965 disappeared. "...Five, four, three, two, one! Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year, Sweetheart," Lenny said with a grin before pressing a kiss to Midge's lips. "I think it's gonna be a good one," he added as he pressed his hand to her abdomen.

"It's funny you should say that," she replied with the smallest of grimaces. "Because the thing is, I think this one might be ready to get '66 started right away."

"What do you-" Lenny began in confusion before it dawned on him what she was saying, his eyes widening. "You're in labor?"

"Well, I'm having contractions," Midge clarified, trying to play it down. "I've been feeling something for the past hour or so, but I didn't want to say anything until after the ball dropped."

"Fuck, we need to get out of here," Lenny said as his eyes darted anxiously, "right now!"

"This is why I didn't say anything," Midge said with a sigh of expectation. "Lenny, it's fine. The contractions are mild and 20 minutes apart and my water hasn't even broken yet, we've got more than enough time to get to the hospital."

Lenny laughed a little in panic. "Even so, I think we should go."

"We probably should," Midge agreed reluctantly, knowing he wouldn't relax until they made it to the hospital. "I'll say my goodbyes and then we can get a cab."

"Say your goodbyes?" he questioned, his face still panicked. "Do you really need to do that?"

"Lenny," Midge said his name as a warning and with a stern look. "I'll be two minutes, you go and grab our coats."

"Alright, two minutes," he warned with a point of his finger, earning nothing more than a cock of her head and a raise of her eyebrows in retaliation from his wife.

"You're leaving early, aren't you?" Joel observed when he saw Lenny collecting his and Midge's things.

"Yeah, well, thanks for the evening, but Midge is in labor."

"Oh, shit," Joel reacted with initial shock before his one upman ship could rear its head: "But you know it takes ages, right? A fucking day Midge was in labor before she gave birth to Ethan. I came back to the hospital twice thinking he would have been born already."

"Well, I intend to be there with Midge for as much as they'll let me."

"The whole thing?" Joel scoffed. "I wasn't about to hang around to hear Midge screaming in pain." He snorted. "Or Mei. Nah, I just got there for the good part, when the kid is born everything was all nice and cleaned up."

"As always," Lenny mock doffed his invisible cap to Joel, "thank you for your invaluable wisdom."

Lenny turned to walk away and a second passed before Joel called after him, hesitance in his voice. "Lenny."

Halting, Lenny turned. "Yeah?"

"I just…I wanted to say…" Joel swallowed, finding this even more difficult than he thought he would. "The stuff I said at that dinner Midge threw… It was out of line and erm"–he scratched the back of his neck–"not my business."

Lenny just looked at him, his expression unreadable to Joel.

"And I can see that you make Midge happy and well"–he glanced down and shrugged his shoulders before again meeting Lenny's gaze–"she deserves that. So…" He paused, the next two words being by far the hardest to dislodge from his throat and force out of his mouth. "I'm sorry."

Lenny nodded stoically. "Apology noted," he said, sharing a final small nod of understanding with Joel before he turned to return to Midge.

"Ready?" he asked Midge, placing her coat on her shoulders and a reassuring hand on the small of her back.

"I am ready," she confirmed with a nod; ready to leave but even more, ready to finally give birth.

Notes:

Next up: the birth!

As always, thank you for reading my silly little story! ❤️