"I think you may have misunderstood..."
Natasha's voice comes from the other end of the phone, "No, you don't need to explain. Besides, S.H.I.E.L.D. actually has medical insurance for family members. I've said it before, our benefits are quite good..."
"I didn't... wait, are you saying there's money? 30% of the amount Nick reported??? That's so high??? Captain America's bonus is only 18%..."
"Oh, yes, thank you for your concern, she's okay..."
Natasha mentions on the phone, "I heard that Stark wants to hire some neuroscientists for further modifications to his suit. I hope you can remind him that even though Colonel Rhodes has resigned, the military never give up. Even without the Air Force, there's still the Army and Navy. This trouble is far from over..."
Schiller says, "I understand, I believe Stark now should be able to handle these things on his own."
In fact, Schiller is right. Stark really has to handle these things on his own now. And what's even more troublesome is that he now has to learn to take care of himself.
Previously, Obadiah was in charge of most of Stark's weapons manufacturing and military-industrial departments. But now, Obadiah is critically injured, aging, and his recovery is not going well. He's still in a coma. Pepper goes crazy with the workload, wishing she could clone herself eight times.
Originally, Pepper was just Stark's personal secretary. Even if she helped manage the company, she was only responsible for personnel and procurement matters. But now that Obadiah has fallen, Pepper has taken full control of the entire Stark Industries. She no longer has time to deal with Stark's personal matters.
It is well known that Stark is almost incapable of taking care of himself in daily life. Originally, he could stay at Rhodes's house. But now Rhodes has gone on vacation too. Even though Jarvis is intelligent, he's just an digital life and can't take care of Stark in every aspect.
Schiller and Stark stand on either side of the clinic door, staring at each other. Stark taps the door and says, "Let me in! It's still daytime, don't you open the door here?"
"You don't have an appointment, so of course we won't open."
"Damn it, why can they come and go anytime, but not me?"
"You said it yourself, they can leave anytime. How long do you plan to stay here? Don't tell me it's for a month."
"Well... not that long, it depends on how busy Pepper will be. I guess with her intelligence, she'll be able to take over the entire Stark Industries in about three weeks."
"Three weeks??? I suggest you turn left to S.H.I.E.L.D."
"Hey, you know I don't want to go there. There are two old comrades of Howard's. Stark bends two fingers, making quotation marks with his hand.
"They have tea meetings every day, reminiscing about their old days. I can't stand that..."
As he finishes speaking, Stark is about to push the door to enter, but Schiller holds it back with his hand and says, "Listen. I'm touched that you stayed up late studying neuroscience materials for me. But it doesn't mean you can stay here for a month..."
"Why is Spider-Boy allowed, but not me?"
Schiller takes a deep breath and opens his mouth.
Stark, outside the door, stares at him, not wearing his armor now. The wind outside is blowing heavily, and he has to struggle to hold his scarf in place.
Well, he looks a bit pitiful.
Schiller hesitates for a moment, and Stark pushes the door open and squeezes in. After entering, he pats his coat and looks up and down, mumbling, "This house has the most mismatched structure and function I've ever seen."
Schiller regrets it immediately, but what makes him regret even more is yet to come.
As a friend, Iron Man is indeed loyal enough. If he only appears before you once a month, you would think he is the best friend in the world, smart, wealthy, and loyal.
But when he appears in front of you every day within a month, you would only think of him as a pile of shit.
Stark belongs to the type that can only be admired from a distance. Soon, Schiller understands why Rhodes was so quick to pack up and go on a vacation to Antarctica, and how wise of a decision it was. He probably anticipated the current situation and hurriedly left New York.
On the morning of the next day, before Schiller gets out of bed, he hears noise downstairs. Stark grimaces as he moves around the fridge, but as he turns, the cuff of his sweater grazes the edge of the dining table. He curses under his breath, using two fingers to pull the sleeve back into place, then quickly runs upstairs to change clothes.
As he returns downstairs, his mouth never stops complaining, "Damn it, I feel the air here is filled with the smell of oil. Why can't you clean this place properly? Jesus, the dust on the armrests must have been there for ten years. And those picture frames, they're breeding grounds for bacteria..."
"Oh, the kettle, and that one. Do you know that the steam it sprays out may contain various bacteria that are harmful to the respiratory tract..."
"Shit, stay away! You rat, I'm allergic to fur. Go away. Has it been vaccinated? I hope it's not carrying any contagious diseases," Stark grumbles to himself, shivering a little.
After breakfast, Stark slouches on the couch in the living room and flirts over the phone, "Oh, yes, yes... sweetheart, I haven't had much free time lately. Magazine cover? Well, you'll have to ask that bald editor, you know, Hollywood. Olivia? No, no, she's not as pretty as you. Of course, I guess no one at that fashion show would be sexier than you..."
Schiller, sitting by the window writing his thesis, can't take it anymore and hits the back of Stark's head with a ballpoint pen. Stark yelps in surprise and turns to look at him.
After a while, Peter arrives, and the two of them start playing games together again.
When these two stay in one room, it truly exemplifies the saying "they never sleep at night nor rise in the morning."
Stark's schedule in the lab is basically upside down. He usually starts experiments around 6 or 7 p.m., and works until 8 or 9 a.m., then sleeps until the afternoon. According to him, that's when his inspiration is at its peak.
Peter used to stay up all night too. Due to redecoration at his house, he stays with Schiller for a while. Schiller has a healthy daily routine, going to bed and waking up early. Out of consideration for not causing any trouble to Doctor, Peter tries to adjust his schedule as well, and he usually sleeps around midnight.
As a yellow-furred rat, Pikachu is actually nocturnal and most active between 3 and 4 a.m.
So, when Stark arrives, the three and a half human living in this house each have their own biological clock.
The intense clash of their schedules turns the entire house into chaos. Just as Schiller is preparing to go to bed, Stark wakes up. Stark and Peter are engrossed in gaming while Peter feels sleepy. By the time Stark and Pikachu battle until sunrise, exhausted and ready to sleep, Schiller is already awake.
Not to mention the two superheroes flying around over New York whenever they feel like it.
Iron Man usually saves the world during the day, sacrificing his daytime sleep. So, occasionally, around 10 or 11 in the morning when Pikachu is fast asleep, he suddenly comes alive like a zombie, ready to save the world.Pikachu almost piss in his cup.
And the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man likes to go out at night, also sacrificing his nighttime sleep. In most cases, it would be in the midnight when Schiller is sound asleep. Because of this, every time Peter goes out or comes back, he often gets hit on the back of his head by flying pens and tea cups.
For Steve who drops by from time to time,there are irreconcilable conflicts among him and Stark. Every time Steve goes for his morning jog, Stark is still awake. Sleepy-eyed Iron Man can't out-argue Captain America and it frustrates him so much that he gives up on sleep, puts on his armor, and challenges Steve to a duel.
When the two finish their fight and go their separate ways, it's usually around noon. Yes, Peter, who has stayed up all night, wakes up again...
Natasha stands at the entrance of the clinic, very puzzled, and asks Schiller, "Apart from your pet, there should be three other people living here. But why do I always only see one of them??"
"The colleagues from the statistics department gave up making you a schedule for joint activities. It's like a lottery every time I come here, looking for someone,"
Schiller is also very angry as he claims, "This is my house, so of course their schedules should accommodate mine. And my routine is the healthiest. I sleep at 8 p.m. and wake up at 5 a.m. Is there a more regular schedule than that?"
Stark argues indignantly, "No great scientist stays up all night for experiments. Night is the best time given by God for humans to unleash their genius brains. Come on, the inventions I make at night can change the world. Why should I compromise?"
Peter also complains, "Who goes to bed at 9 p.m. like a good baby these days? My classmates all do this, and there are so many exciting new games recently. Why should I stay up? You should ask those game developers why they release all the fun games this month..."
Pikachu makes the most sense, "I'm just a mouse! How can you expect a mouse to adjust its schedule like a human?!"
The symbiote feels very wronged too. In Schiller's mind, it says, "Their brains always smell so good at night... it's really delicious."
Finally, one night, Schiller sleeps soundly until the midnight when he is awakened by the symbiote's desperate swallowing. Just as he's about to find what happens, Stark bursts into the room excitedly shouting, "I figured it out!!! Look! Look at this! What do you think of this structure? As a nano-neuron... I'm a genius! This will definitely work!"
The next morning, Pepper stands at the entrance of the clinic, perplexed, and receives Stark, who has been thrown out along with his luggage, looking utterly confused.