The next day, almost every newspaper's headline featured two men making peace signs: one was the young and handsome Asian, Blake, and the other was the playboy Tony Stark.
The headlines generally fell into two categories: "Tony Stark Becomes Iron Man, Teams Up with Young Asian Warrior to Defeat the Evil Iron Monger" or "Tony Stark and Young Asian Man, Two Newly Emerged Superheroes, Come Out Together." The second type of headline, implying a romantic relationship, was more popular with the gossip crowd.
Compared to Western aesthetics, Blake indeed appeared more delicate. Though not effeminate, his good skin and fair, handsome face would undoubtedly make him a target among prison inmates. Even Pepper Potts, looking at the newspaper photos of Tony and Blake posing together with peace signs, joked that they made a good pair.
"Damn media, I should burn down their TV stations. It's one thing to say I'm gay, but calling me the submissive one? I'm a straight man through and through! My dick is harder than my sword!" Blake fumed, pointing at the TV where a talk show host was enthusiastically discussing the alleged romantic entanglement between Tony Stark and Blake.
"Where's your legal team? Let me borrow them. I want to sue for defamation. This is blatant slander," Blake said, slamming the sofa's armrest.
Tony glanced at him and continued typing furiously on his computer. With Obadiah dead, there were many internal company issues to handle. Although a professional team had been hired, Tony needed to present some impressive new products since they had stopped weapons manufacturing.
He was currently designing a renewable energy source based on the arc reactor principle and had moved his work from his mansion's garage to the office. Some of the old shareholders needed personal reassurance from Tony, given that the Stark name was a valuable brand.
Tony didn't care much about the public's opinion, especially regarding the rumors about him and Blake. While he wasn't thrilled about the media misrepresenting his sexual orientation, he found Blake's anger amusing and thought it was worth it.
Seeing Tony ignoring him, Blake turned to Coulson, who had just entered the office. "Weren't you supposed to help clean up this mess? These reports are seriously defaming me."
"This is a country of free speech. We've already done our best to cover for you regarding Obadiah's death. In the video, your actions don't look like self-defense," Coulson replied, referring to the video of Blake being caught on tape. The Iron Monger was clearly incapacitated, yet Blake had unhesitatingly killed him, which legally constituted excessive force.
"So why are you here? You're not telling me to go to work, are you?" Blake knew Coulson wouldn't show up without a reason. Initially, he had planned to leave, but since his house still needed a few more days, he decided to stay until it was ready and the custom AI program Tony had promised was installed.
"The boss wants to see both of you. I'm here to set up a time," Coulson said. Nick Fury wanted to meet them mainly for the Avengers initiative. Blake's demonstrated abilities far exceeded those of a super-soldier, and Tony Stark's armor was revolutionary.
Everyone knew Tony's genius, and his current armor was only the first generation. Who knew how powerful future iterations could be? Jarvis, the early-stage AI, wasn't a secret. With the arc reactor and the armor, combined with an AI and Tony's immense wealth, he could become a formidable force.
After arranging a meeting for two days later, Coulson hurriedly left. Blake, upon learning that his house would be ready in about a week, nodded in satisfaction. As he was about to leave, Tony seemed to have thought of something.
Tony suddenly looked up and said, "By the way, there's a party tomorrow night. You know, since I've become Iron Man, some friends want to celebrate. There are always some bored rich folks, right? More importantly, there will be plenty of model beauties. So, are you in?"
With so many beauties, only a fool would refuse. Black Widow had been out of sight for a long time, making her hard to harass. When Blake first arrived in this world, he planned to hook up with a voluptuous woman, but he had been too caught up in the Iron Man plot to have any chances. Now, with a party on the horizon, how could he not go?
The party was held on the rooftop of a hotel. Such rooftop party venues were common in Los Angeles, with almost every decent hotel turning its rooftop into a party spot. This was LA, after all. With Hollywood, there were plenty of rich celebrities and movie moguls for whom parties were a daily occurrence.
Tony had attended and hosted countless parties like this, but for Blake, it was his first time experiencing something like this. The dynamic music, the wild R-DJ, professional bartenders, and the infinity pool were all impressive.{You see what I did there???}
Most importantly, the rooftop was filled with busty, long-legged women of various skin tones. Blake even spotted a few second- and third-tier sexy actresses who often appeared on the big screen.
"This is what a party is all about. This is living! Tony, you should have brought me to places like this a long time ago!"
The two men's arrival became the focus of the event. Currently, the hottest newsmakers weren't political figures or big stars but Tony Stark and this mysterious Asian, Blake. Hearing Blake's excited voice, Tony smiled and pushed him into the crowd.
"Ladies, who wants to tame this wild bull tonight? I'll personally give her a brand-new sports car!"
Tony's words caused an immediate uproar. Many of the girls were new actresses in Hollywood. Not to mention Tony Stark's reward, just being seen with this mysterious Asian would generate tons of news and attention.
Besides, he and Tony Stark were considered the latest superheroes since Captain America. As for the rumors about him and Tony Stark, no one cared if they were true or not.
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