Lunch passed in a lively atmosphere filled with laughter as everyone got along surprisingly well. They were all around the same age, each exceptional in their own way, so there was never a shortage of things to talk about.
Of course, Daniel firmly believed that he was the most outstanding person present. If anyone disagreed, they were welcome to step outside and settle it in a one on one fight.
After lunch, they chatted for a while longer before T'Challa announced that he was returning to Wakanda. Poor guy, he had finally managed to leave home for a trip, thinking he'd get to relax and enjoy himself for a few days.
Instead, everyone ignored him. Tony, who used to drag him out for fun every day, now had his entire mind occupied by Daniel's spaceship. He didn't have time to hang out anymore. As for Daniel, he was going back to Smallville that evening to have dinner with his family. He invited T'Challa to come along, but T'Challa politely declined.
A small town didn't exactly offer much entertainment, so he wasn't interested. Besides, Daniel's family had only just reunited. Why would he intrude on something like that? He'd rather head home and enjoy life as Wakanda's prince.
After T'Challa left, Daniel clumsily piloted his cruiser towards Stark Industries' research facility. Since the day it had rolled off the production line, this was undoubtedly the worst pilot the patrol cruiser had ever encountered.
Tony, who had the weakest stomach of anyone on board, nearly threw up his lunch. After crashing into one of the factory buildings, Daniel finally managed to park the ship. Then, he wiped the sweat from his forehead, unable to hide his satisfaction.
"The air conditioning on this ship isn't very good. So Tony, remember to replace it for me."
With that, Daniel carefully helped Susan off the ship. Tony staggered down behind him with Pepper supporting his arm. The moment he noticed Daniel's look of disdain, Tony nearly exploded.
"What?"
"You think you're better than me?"
"I just didn't sleep well last night!"
Daniel nodded in a perfectly understanding manner.
"I get it."
But somehow, Tony still managed to read Daniel's expression, weakling.
Tony was instantly annoyed.
"You've got quite a bit of self-awareness."
"It's a good thing you're installing Artificial Intelligence."
"With your flying skills, you'd never even make it out of Earth's atmosphere."
Daniel completely disagreed; he thought he had incredible talent. He'd figured out how to fly such an advanced alien spaceship this quickly.
Could an ordinary person do that? Absolutely not. 99.99 percent of people on Earth couldn't. Then again, they'd first have to own a spaceship.
Daniel didn't believe a single word Tony said. The only reason he wanted an Artificial Intelligence installed was because he was lazy.
'Nice try, weakling.' Tony could practically hear those words coming from Daniel's eyes. He was getting so irritated he almost started swearing.
This guy, he's just a solar-powered battery. Yet he's actually that full of himself? What a joke.
Tony took a deep breath, calmed himself down, tugged at his collar, and said, "You crashed into one of my research buildings."
"It was filled with precision equipment."
"A rough estimate is about a billion dollars' worth."
"So, congratulations, your dividends for this year are gone."
The moment Daniel heard that, he immediately became unhappy.
"That rundown building of yours is worth deducting an entire year's dividends?"
Tony had mostly recovered by now. Smirking, he replied, "Actually, I think I underestimated it. Let's deduct next year's dividends too."
Daniel couldn't accept that. Everyone who knew him understood one thing.
He was unbelievably cheap. The basement of his house was literally filled with cash. Whenever he had free time, he'd go downstairs just to admire it. Anyone who dared touch his money; he would deal with them. With a sinister smile, Daniel looked at Tony.
"Tony, you know my vision lets me see whatever I want. So, maybe one day I'll get bored and start looking around."
"And who knows, I might accidentally catch someone rolling around in bed. That wouldn't be a very flattering sight, would it?"
Tony imagined someone watching him during one of his private moments. He visibly shivered. That was genuinely horrifying.
"...Since we're friends, I won't make you pay for the building."
"I was planning to tear it down and replace the equipment anyway."
That was what Tony said aloud. Inside, however, he was already plotting revenge. When I get back, I'll figure out a way to block that walking solar battery's vision. The moment I succeed, don't expect another cent in dividends. That idiot has a super-brain but never bothers using it. I'll just tell him the company needs more investment.
Tony continued planning how to get back at Daniel.
Even better, if I can figure out his weakness and develop a weapon specifically for him, I'll beat him into the ground. Just imagining himself someday overpowering Daniel immediately put Tony in a much better mood.
After leaving the spaceship in Tony's hands, Daniel returned with Susan to their house on Long Island. Standing at the front door, he hugged her tightly.
"Susan, just take a hot bath and relax. I'll see you tonight."
"I'll come back as soon as dinner's over."
After saying goodbye to Susan, Daniel flew back to Smallville.
Carol had left long before, she couldn't stand watching Daniel and Susan constantly flirting with each other.
Not once had they considered the feelings of a single woman standing nearby. What made it even stranger for Carol was that one of them was her younger brother and the other was one of her closest friends.
Seeing the two of them together still felt incredibly awkward.
...
That evening, Mary prepared another enormous feast. This time there were even more dishes than the night before. The dining table was barely big enough to hold everything.
After dinner, Daniel cleared his throat.
"I'm going back to Long Island tonight."
No one responded to him. John and Mary's entire attention was focused on Carol.
Daniel repeated himself several times, each time louder than before. Only then did John impatiently wave his hand.
"Just go already."
Daniel left feeling utterly wronged. He flew all the way back to Long Island, convinced he'd completely fallen out of favor with his parents.
Fortunately, the moment he saw Susan, his mood immediately improved.
He buried his face against her chest and rubbed his head affectionately against her. Within moments, he'd completely forgotten about being ignored.
Taking in the faint fragrance coming from her body, Daniel scooped Susan up into his arms and carried her towards the bedroom. Once they reached the bed, Daniel was just about to take the next step when Susan stopped him.
"I still have to go to the lab tomorrow…" she looked at him "...Besides, you can't actually do anything anyway."
Her tone carried a trace of resentment. Every single time he teased her until she was completely flustered, and he'd lose his nerve at the last moment. Leaving her unable to sleep for the rest of the night.
"This time..."
"It's different."
For the first time in his life, Daniel finally lifted his head proudly.
"I can."
Tony and T'Challa had both long since reached the point where they'd slept with over a hundred women.
Meanwhile, Daniel had always been too embarrassed to admit he was still technically a virgin.
But that didn't matter anymore. Tonight, he was finally going to become a real man.
"You..."
"...Really can?"
There was unmistakable hope in Susan's eyes. She had always been just as embarrassed to talk about it as Daniel was. Who would believe that after dating for six years, they still hadn't gone all the way?
She wasn't even religious. It wasn't like she believed couples should remain abstinent before marriage. Whenever the women in her lab started making suggestive jokes, Susan would quietly excuse herself and walk away.
Daniel looked into her eyes, then nodded. The two of them simply stared at each other, as neither moved.
Finally, Susan couldn't stand the silence anymore. Growing increasingly anxious, she asked, "So, what exactly are you waiting for?"
...
That night, the lights in the Long Island mansion didn't go out until dawn.
The next morning, Susan slowly woke up, looking slightly exhausted. She found Daniel lying beside her, quietly watching her.
"So..."
"Still going to the lab?" Daniel asked.
Susan shot him a charming sideways glance.
"What do you think?"
"Do I look like I can go anywhere today?"
Daniel cautiously asked, "Then... should we keep going?"
"Oh, shut up!" Susan huffed, unable to hide her smile. "I can barely keep my eyes open after last night. You completely wore me out."