Colonel Rhodes wrapped up his statent.
Now it was General Ross's turn to take the stage.
After all, everything that happened that day,
Could be traced back to him.
Naturally, he had to make an appearance.
If he didn't clean up his own ss,
Who would?
That said…
General Ross didn't speak for very long.
Even if this incident was his doing,
Even if he had to take responsibility himself,
He was still a general.
It wasn't like he was going to stand up there and humiliate himself.
So he just gave a brief, official recap,
Reiterating what Colonel Rhodes had already said.
And then, with the flat tone of bureaucracy:
Confird that this whole situation was just a movie shoot.
,
Backstage.
At that mont,
Tony Stark and his assistant Pepper were waiting behind the curtains.
This ti around,
S.H.I.E.L.D. hadn't been much help to Tony.
So Tony hadn't bothered keeping in touch with Coulson.
As for that promise he'd made during the party a few nights ago,
Tony had long since forgotten about it.
Back then, he'd only said "yes" to shut Coulson up,
All he'd been thinking about was finding Pepper.
Now?
He couldn't even rember Coulson's na.
Coulson had co by twice asking for a eting,
But Tony made excuses and turned him away each ti.
Which ant,
Right now, only the two of them were backstage.
,
Pepper carefully straightened Tony's suit.
Tony skimd the press release in his hand.
"Honestly? I kinda like the na Iron Man," he said.
"Has a nice ring to it."
He glanced at the paper and muttered,
"This is ridiculous. Stark Industries funded a movie shoot?"
"Everyone in Arica knows, "
"Stark only deals in weapons, AI, aerospace, and advanced energy."
"Oh, right. We're not doing weapons anymore."
"But either way, we definitely don't make movies."
Pepper gave him a sideways glance. "Everything's been arranged."
"All you have to do is stick to the script."
Tony frowned slightly.
"You don't think this is a little too fake?"
"A movie shoot?"
"Everyone on that street saw what happened."
"Those two giant beasts, , and Mr. Superman, "
"Half the infrastructure got torn up."
"The public's not stupid. You really think they'll buy this story?"
Pepper replied calmly,
"Colonel Rhodes said to just read the statent."
"This'll all blow over soon."
"Get ready. It's ti."
She helped Tony into his jacket.
"…Still, Iron Man's a pretty cool na."
"I never even ca up with sothing that catchy myself."
Pepper gave a soft laugh.
"You're not Iron Man."
"I am."
"You're not."
"Fine, whatever."
Tony knew it was pointless to argue.
Still, with a sly expression, he added,
"If I were Iron Man, "
"Then any girlfriend who knew my identity would be in a tough spot."
"She'd worry every day that I might die, and still feel proud of at the sa ti."
"And that… would just make her…"
"…love even more."
Then,
Tony brought up the party from the other night.
How they'd danced together.
The mood shifted, turning just a little,
Suggestive.
But,
Pepper abruptly cut him off, clearly still bitter.
Because that night,
She had waited upstairs for a long ti.
And Tony?
After seeing photos of terrorists,
Had stord off in a fury, chasing answers.
Left her standing there.
Alone.
The mont she brought it up, Tony didn't know what to say.
He'd been trying to stir up a little romantic tension,
Maybe even confess sothing.
If not that, at least deepen their relationship.
But now?
Just awkward silence.
Luckily,
It was ti for his speech.
Perfect excuse to escape.
,
Press Conference.
Colonel Rhodes, seeing General Ross had finished speaking, stepped up to the mic.
"Now, Mr. Stark will give his statent."
"No questions, thank you."
With that,
Tony Stark walked onstage.
"Been a while since I've seen you all," he said casually.
"I think this ti, I'll just read from the script."
A few friendly laughs rippled through the room.
"So folks think I was involved in the recent Harlem incident, "
He hadn't even finished the sentence,
When a familiar female reporter, the one who'd interviewed him before,
Raised her hand.
"Excuse , Mr. Stark."
"You expect us to believe…"
"That Stark Industries funded a movie shoot?"
Tony paused,
Then answered firmly.
"I know it sounds a bit far-fetched."
"But doubting the official story is one thing…"
"…and accusing of being a superhero is another."
The reporter gave him a sly smile.
"I never said you were a superhero."
"No?"
"No."
"Well, good."
Tony gave a knowing smirk.
"Because that'd be way too far-fetched."
He glanced at the paper again.
His tone growing distracted.
"Look, obviously, I'm not the heroic type."
"I've got tons of character flaws and a long list of screw-ups."
"Most of them, you all probably know."
Beside him, Colonel Rhodes was getting nervous.
He leaned in, quietly urging Tony to stick to the script.
Tony nodded slightly.
Picked up the paper again.
Read the first line.
"…Actually, the truth is…"
He stared at the words.
Paused.
His thoughts drifted.
Should I really go along with this version of events?
Then, he rembered yesterday,
That casual phone call to Carl.
And how Carl had said, in his usual laid-back voice,
"Do whatever you want."
Tony looked down at the crowd,
A sea of reporters, eyes all fixed on him.
Then,
He crumpled the script and tossed it aside.
And slowly said:
"I am…"
"…Iron Man."
For a mont,
The entire room froze.
Then chaos erupted.
The once orderly rows of seated journalists,
Sprang to their feet.
Caras flashed.
Microphones shot forward.
Everyone tried to shout over one another.
The scene was total pandemonium.
Because before,
Sure, there had been rumors. Footage. Witnesses.
But it was all just speculation.
The video could've been faked.
Now?
Tony Stark himself had confird it.
And with his status,
There was no way he'd joke about sothing like this.
To the side,
Colonel Rhodes saw the scene spiraling out of control.
He quickly stepped in.
"This concludes today's press conference."
Then, grabbing Tony's arm, he added,
"Let's go. Now."
He wasn't thrilled Tony had gone off-script,
But at the end of the day,
They were friends.
And now was not the ti to linger.
Then,
A voice called out from the crowd:
"What about Superman?"
"If Iron Man's real, does that an Superman is too?"
The voice made Tony turn.
It was that sa female reporter, the one whose na he could never rember.
She looked him straight in the eye.
Tony gave a relaxed smile.
"Of course he's real."
"He's a shareholder at Stark Industries, and he's Superman."
"We're out here saving the world."
"Though, to be fair…"
"That ti, I showed up a little late."
Off to the side,
Colonel Rhodes saw more reporters rushing the stage.
He imdiately pulled Tony away, hurrying them both offstage.
End of chapter...
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