Stark Industries.
Pepper took a sip of coffee to keep herself alert.
Lately, she had been utterly exhausted.
The company's stock, internal personnel changes—none of it mattered to her.
But when it came to Tony, she had a special feeling.
During this period of Tony's disappearance, she had been more anxious than anyone.
Pepper took another sip of coffee and leaned back in her office chair.
She closed her eyes to rest.
She was too tired. Sometimes, mental exhaustion was more draining than physical fatigue.
When she opened her eyes again, she was startled!
"Oh my God!!"
Pepper jolted awake, all drowsiness gone, and jumped up from her chair!
"Who are you?"
Pepper had never seen Peter in his Punisher guise.
Looking at the masked man in front of her, she felt a wave of unease.
"Who I am isn't important."
Peter spoke:
"What's important is that I've brought back your sweetheart."
"Tony?" Pepper was stunned, then quickly denied it:
"He's not my sweetheart. He's my boss."
"Where is he?!"
"In the next room, sleeping."
Peter nodded slightly, gesturing toward the room.
Pepper rushed into the room and saw Tony, covered in injuries, lying on the bed, fast asleep.
Beside him was a bespectacled man with a scholarly air—Yinsen.
Peter's voice came from behind her.
"His name is Yinsen. He saved Tony's life. He'll explain what happened."
"I rescued Tony from the terrorists' den. He owes me a favor. I'll come back to see him at this time tomorrow."
After saying this, Peter prepared to leave.
Yinsen quickly stood up. The scientist had endured inhumane mental torture at the hands of the terrorists.
Now, having escaped and with his mind at ease, he was utterly exhausted. Like Tony, he could have fallen asleep instantly.
But he forced himself to stay awake and walked up to Peter.
He grasped Peter's hand with both of his.
"Thank you, sir!"
"Thank you. Without you, we would have surely met a terrible end!"
"Thank you!"
His expression was sincere, and the joy of surviving the ordeal brought tears to the eyes of this scholar, who was nearly fifty.
"Get some rest, Yinsen."
"I didn't save you—you saved yourself. If you had colluded with those terrorists, I wouldn't have hesitated to leave one more body in that desert."
Yinsen was stunned but could only nod repeatedly, continuing to thank him.
Peter didn't say more.
He turned and left Stark Industries.
11 a.m.
Outside Midtown High School of Science and Technology.
Because of its proximity to the school, many of the surrounding shops were restaurants.
Last night, after returning home, Gwen had planned to spend the entire weekend glued to Peter.
After crossing the boundary from friendship to something more, all she wanted was to be with Peter.
To that end, she had even looked up "100 things to do with your boyfriend" online.
She had planned to put on a nice outfit and go find Peter first thing in the morning, to eat, watch movies, play games, and go shopping together.
But the band rehearsal had been scheduled long in advance.
The band wasn't just hers—she had to consider the other members.
So, she could only meet Peter during her lunch break.
"Peter!"
Gwen spotted Peter from a distance and waved at him.
Peter walked over and naturally took Gwen's hand.
This made Gwen's heart flutter.
A guy's hand is so firm and warm.
"Miss Gwen, how about steak for lunch? My treat."
"Then Mr. Parker will have to foot the bill!"
It felt strange, but she liked it.
For over a decade, the two had been in that ambiguous state of "more than friends, less than lovers."
Now that they were together, it felt a little odd.
They arrived at a steakhouse, part of the Stark Industries portfolio.
Stark Industries primarily focused on technology and military research.
As for why they owned a restaurant, it was probably something the genius playboy had bought on a drunken whim.
After all, he wasn't short on money.
Entering the restaurant, the interior was extravagantly decorated.
Even Gwen was impressed.
As the police chief's daughter, she hadn't frequented such high-end places.
After all, George was an honest man, not corrupt. His salary put them in the middle class, but just barely.
"Peter, this is too extravagant. Let's go somewhere else."
Peter shrugged:
"It's not like we'll do this every day."
The first date had to be special.
Peter ordered a few signature dishes.
Suddenly, a woman in a professional suit approached.
"Excuse me, are you Peter Parker, Mr. Parker?"
Peter was slightly taken aback. He didn't recall ever meeting this woman.
"That's me. Is there something you need?"
"We've just received word that all your expenses at any Stark Industries establishment are permanently free of charge."
"Enjoy your meal."
Peter was momentarily stunned but quickly figured out what was going on.
Earlier, in his Punisher guise, he had mentioned that Peter was his friend.
Since Stark couldn't find the Punisher, he transferred all his gratitude to Peter.
Gwen looked utterly bewildered.
"Peter, when did you get so close to Mr. Stark?"
...
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