Midge takes a deep breath when she hears the sound of Joel’s voice, then turns to him.
“I really didn’t expect you to come to a divorce party,” she says.
“Why not?” He replies. “I’m part of the divorce too.”
The irony is that Alfred did seduce her, at least a little bit. He showed up at her apartment one night and talked the panties right off of her. It was entirely consensual though. Her eyes furtively flick to the couch where she and Alfred had…
Midge clears her throat. “Alfred, this is Joel, my ex-husband. Joel, this is Alfred.”
Of course this is the ex-husband, no one else would be so immediately on the defensive and Alfred gives him a nod but does not extend a hand towards the other man. Not after he's made a jab at Midge already.
"All right, mate." He says in greeting, his tone neutral even though he already doesn't like the way Joel is looking him up and down.
"I'm also the father of our children, Ethan and Esther." He says and looks at Midge, "Has he met them yet?
“No,” Midge replies calmly. “I wanted you two to meet first.” Even if Joel is being hostile, Midge is going to match that with calmness, at least for now. Joel knows every single one of her buttons to push.
She’s noticed that the two men didn’t shake hands. Not off to a good start. Midge doesn’t get the hostility. Joel cheated on her. Did he think she’d never move on with someone else?
There’s an awkward silence as Joel looks around at the other guests, friends of theirs, or former friends maybe. Maybe everyone here has taken Midge’s side.
“Fine,” he says. “I’ll leave. Feels weird, considering that I used to live here.”
“Joel…” Midge says.
“I’ll call you tomorrow about the kids.” He’s not going to stay here and fight a losing battle against his ex-wife, her new boyfriend and a group of their old friends. Joel puts his beer down on the table and leaves the apartment.
Midge sighs deeply and puts her face in her hands.
Alfred watches the way Midge crumples, hiding her face in her hands and he makes a snap decision and goes out after Joel who is standing on the curb trying to flag down a cab. When he sees Alfred coming he scowls and tries to turn away but Alfred puts a hand on his shoulder.
"Joel, listen..."
"Get your hand off me."
"I'm not trying to replace you."
Joel stops, his body tensing as if he is about to try and punch Alfred but when he looks at the other man he finds that Alfred's face is sincere and calm and after a moment he relaxes slightly.
"I know you two have a past, I'm not trying to erase that. And I would never come between you and your kids, that's not the type of man I am." He explains softly but then lifts his brows at Joel, "But I'm also not the type of bloke to stand around and have someone be rude to me or the woman I care about."
Joel inhales sharply but then huffs out a small laugh.
"Yeah, all right. I kind of started it."
"And I continued it." Alfred admits and then extends a hand out, "Let's start over. I'm Alfred Pennyworth."
Joel eyes the hand for a second and then clasps it firmly, giving it a shake.
Midge watches as Alfred goes after Joel. Horrified, she runs to the window that looks out over the street. When Alfred grabs Joel, Midge is convinced that a fight is about to break out. Whatever Alfred says to him next seems to get through to him, because a few moments later, the two of them are shaking hands. She breathes a sigh of relief.
Through the window Midge will see the two men talking for a bit longer and after a bit Joel actually laughs and claps Alfred on the back, the two share a few more words and then Alfred hails a cab for the other man. Giving him a wave before he heads back inside.
"You peeping on the neighbours?" He asks Midge as he comes over.
“It kind of was,” she says. At least he made it right though.
Midge sighs. “He may have cheated on me, but he’s really not a terrible guy.”
They get along most of the time, though arguments do happen frequently enough that Midge doesn’t regret her divorce. Ultimately, it’s about keeping things civil for the kids.
"Sometimes I can't help but push back if someone is being aggressive towards me." He says quietly and gives her another squeeze, "But tonight wasn't the time. So I'm sorry."
He pauses to just hold her for a moment before pulling back and offering her a little smile, "We've decided to meet up next week for a pint. Just the two of us so we can talk like regular blokes."
Without an audience of Midge's friends or the pressure of trying to behave or act a certain way.
“It would,” she agrees, “especially if you plan on staying around.”
He’s been around for a while now. Midge doesn’t know when he’s going back to England and he’s a bit afraid to ask. She’s going to miss him tremendously.
“I hope not,” she replies, “but I know this isn’t your home.” Her face clouds at the thought of him leaving. “I… wouldn’t expect you to be here forever.”
“I guess I’ll keep you, then.” Midge smiles up at him, then rests her forehead against his. “Thank you for coming tonight.”
The guests start to make their way out one by one until just Midge and Alfred are left. She sits on the couch, exhausted, but tugs in his hand so that he’ll sit next to her.
“Parties are fun, but can be exhausting,” she says. “To be honest, I’m glad to have you all to myself again.”
Alfred makes sure to say goodbye to each of her friends, wanting to make sure he leaves a good impression, especially after the debacle with her ex. But once they're all gone he flops down next to her with a sigh.
"Same. It was fun but it's nice and quiet now, just the two of us."
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
welp
“I really didn’t expect you to come to a divorce party,” she says.
“Why not?” He replies. “I’m part of the divorce too.”
The irony is that Alfred did seduce her, at least a little bit. He showed up at her apartment one night and talked the panties right off of her. It was entirely consensual though. Her eyes furtively flick to the couch where she and Alfred had…
Midge clears her throat. “Alfred, this is Joel, my ex-husband. Joel, this is Alfred.”
Please behave like civilized men.
😈 tee hee
"All right, mate." He says in greeting, his tone neutral even though he already doesn't like the way Joel is looking him up and down.
"I'm also the father of our children, Ethan and Esther." He says and looks at Midge, "Has he met them yet?
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She’s noticed that the two men didn’t shake hands. Not off to a good start. Midge doesn’t get the hostility. Joel cheated on her. Did he think she’d never move on with someone else?
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"I kind of figured I'd meet them later on, you know, when things were solid." Alfred says, glancing at Midge and giving her a little smile.
"No point in confusing them when they've already had to deal with a divorce and nasty rumours about their father banging his much younger secretary."
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“Listen, pal,” Joel says, his anger rising, “do not talk about my kids. You have no idea what my kids have—"
“Stop!” Midge cries. “Stop it! Both of you be mature about this, please.”
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Joel's face screws up in a look of surprise and he glances around the room where some of the other guests are eagerly watching their interaction.
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“Fine,” he says. “I’ll leave. Feels weird, considering that I used to live here.”
“Joel…” Midge says.
“I’ll call you tomorrow about the kids.” He’s not going to stay here and fight a losing battle against his ex-wife, her new boyfriend and a group of their old friends. Joel puts his beer down on the table and leaves the apartment.
Midge sighs deeply and puts her face in her hands.
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"Joel, listen..."
"Get your hand off me."
"I'm not trying to replace you."
Joel stops, his body tensing as if he is about to try and punch Alfred but when he looks at the other man he finds that Alfred's face is sincere and calm and after a moment he relaxes slightly.
"I know you two have a past, I'm not trying to erase that. And I would never come between you and your kids, that's not the type of man I am." He explains softly but then lifts his brows at Joel, "But I'm also not the type of bloke to stand around and have someone be rude to me or the woman I care about."
Joel inhales sharply but then huffs out a small laugh.
"Yeah, all right. I kind of started it."
"And I continued it." Alfred admits and then extends a hand out, "Let's start over. I'm Alfred Pennyworth."
Joel eyes the hand for a second and then clasps it firmly, giving it a shake.
"Nice to meet you Alfred."
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"You peeping on the neighbours?" He asks Midge as he comes over.
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She wraps her arms around his waist and rests her head against his shoulder. “Thank you, for whatever you said.”
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"No thanks needed." He says and kisses the top of her head. "It was partially my fault."
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Midge sighs. “He may have cheated on me, but he’s really not a terrible guy.”
They get along most of the time, though arguments do happen frequently enough that Midge doesn’t regret her divorce. Ultimately, it’s about keeping things civil for the kids.
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He pauses to just hold her for a moment before pulling back and offering her a little smile, "We've decided to meet up next week for a pint. Just the two of us so we can talk like regular blokes."
Without an audience of Midge's friends or the pressure of trying to behave or act a certain way.
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She’s kidding… mostly.
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He’s been around for a while now. Midge doesn’t know when he’s going back to England and he’s a bit afraid to ask. She’s going to miss him tremendously.
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"You think I'm going to take off soon or something?"
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The guests start to make their way out one by one until just Midge and Alfred are left. She sits on the couch, exhausted, but tugs in his hand so that he’ll sit next to her.
“Parties are fun, but can be exhausting,” she says. “To be honest, I’m glad to have you all to myself again.”
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"Same. It was fun but it's nice and quiet now, just the two of us."
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“I have very fond memories of us on this couch,” she says cheekily before leaning over to kiss him. “You were so confident that night.”
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Midge pauses to give him a few languid kisses.
“And you did, so many times that night.”
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