Chapter: 22

"I feel like having a drink. How about you?" To cover up the awkwardness caused by their previous actions, Pepper took the initiative to suggest having something to drink.

"As it happens, I feel the same way. What would you like? I'll go get it for you." Tony, who had regained his composure, responded lightly, despite feeling annoyed at his foolish behavior earlier, in order to maintain his composure in front of his beloved.

"I'll have a vodka martini with extra dry olives, at least three of them."

"Sure!"

...

"Two vodka martinis with dry olives, please hurry. And heavy on the olives for one of them." Tony placed a tip in front of the bartender and finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had been incredibly nervous earlier, and Tony had never expected Pepper to lean in for a kiss like that. He wondered if it was a test, and if it was, he certainly failed.

Lost in his thoughts, Tony was interrupted by a flamboyantly dressed female reporter who approached the bar after seeing Tony's back. "Wow, Tony Stark! It's so nice to see you here."

"Oh, hello. You're Carly..." Tony caught a glimpse of the woman's face, vaguely recalling her, but he couldn't remember her name.

"Kristen." Before Tony could pretend to know and guess her name, the reporter, Kristen, directly revealed her name. She knew that someone like Tony Stark, a playboy, would never remember the name of someone like her, even if they had a one-night stand.

Tony: "Right, I was just about to call you that."

"You seem quite nervous being here tonight. Can you at least show me some reaction?" Kristen, with her remarkable observational skills as a journalist, immediately noticed Tony's unnatural demeanor.

"Just as you see, nervous. I guess being nervous is my reaction." Tony didn't want to tell a reporter about his failed kiss because if he did, it would surely make the front-page headline in the entertainment section the next day, exposing it to the whole world.

"But recently, I've heard that Stark Industries is involved in the recent violence. Is that what you mean by responsibility?" Even though Tony didn't want to reveal his thoughts, as a journalist, Kristen wouldn't let go of the opportunity to uncover the content she wanted from Tony.

"Violence? Sorry, I don't understand what you're talking about. I haven't been involved in company matters for a long time. I've been staying at home doing private research." Tony was puzzled by her words; he had no idea what she was referring to.

Kristen handed a stack of photos to Tony. "This is a town called Gulmira. Have you heard of it?"

Of course, Tony had heard of it. He vividly remembered Gulmira as the hometown of Dr. Yinsen, his savior. Since their successful escape, they had gone their separate ways and hadn't seen each other again.

At the time, Yinsen had said that his family had died at the hands of terrorists and he wanted to return to his hometown to protect more people, sparing them the suffering he had endured. Before parting ways, Tony even gave Yinsen the special suit he had made for himself as a gift, hoping to assist him in protecting his life.

But as Tony looked through the photos handed to him by Kristen, seeing the houses reduced to rubble by artillery fire, seeing the scenes of corpses strewn about, and zooming in on the markings on the weapons used by the terrorists, he became furious, yet strangely calm.

"When were these photos taken?" Tony stared at the photos in his hand and coldly asked Kristen.

"Yesterday."

"I didn't authorize any shipments." Tony looked into her eyes as he explained.

"But your company did!"

"My company is not the same as me!" After saying that, Tony didn't linger with the journalist Kristen. He even forgot about his promise to bring the drinks for Pepper.

He carried the photos and went straight to Obadiah, who was still on the red carpet in front of the Disney Concert Hall, ready for an interview. Tony wanted to confront him. "Have you seen these photos? What's going on?"

Obadiah calmly led Tony away from the reporters and spoke with a serious tone, "Tony, Tony, calm down a bit. Don't be so naive."

"Naive!? I used to be so naive. When you all spoke, I actually believed it. I was so naive back then.

Is there another things you haven't told me?... Is that how it is?"

Facing Tony's intense inquiry, Obadiah didn't show any signs of nervousness or revealing anything. He leaned close to Tony's ear and whispered, "Tony, do you think the board of directors is the one who signed the restraining order against you? I am the one who signed that order. It's the only way I can protect you. Can you understand my intentions?"

After finishing his words, Obadiah patted Tony's shoulder, his mouth curled up in a meaningful smile. Then he got into his car, leaving the venue, and leaving Tony standing there in a daze.

"Hey! Old man, what are you spacing out for?" Suddenly, Mark's familiar voice came from behind, startling Tony out of his daze.

After Tony snapped back to reality, Mark still didn't say a word, but he slapped Tony heavily on the back.

"Ouch, that hurt! What's the matter, you brat!"

"Why are you acting all melancholic? Just now, sister Pepper even came over and asked me where you went. I helped cover for you, saying you went to the bathroom.

I didn't expect you to leave Pepper alone on the terrace and have time to space out here. If it's misunderstood that you're overflowing with compassion and flirting with other women, I won't help you explain."

"Oh no! I forgot I promised Pepper a vodka martini. Let's go together and bring the drinks to Pepper. Then, We're going home." Tony grabbed Mark's hand and walked towards the concert hall.

"So soon? You haven't even had a chance to cause a scene yet?" Looking at Tony's complex expression, Mark couldn't remember what had caused this sudden change.

"We do need to cause a scene, but not here. We need to find a different place. My company has made a mistake, and I'll be the one to fix it."