Entertainment: Starting as a Succubus, Taking Hollywood by Storm

Iron Man 2 carried forward the style of its predecessor: humor, action, and a touch of romance. The formula worked like a charm, with audiences eating it up. Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow was a massive hit with fans.

"Black Widow is just too hot. If I were Iron Man, I'd risk it all to be with her."

"I used to think Iron Man and Pepper were the perfect pair, but now? Black Widow's the one."

"Shut up, upstairs! Iron Man doesn't deserve to touch Black Widow—she's mine!"

"What the hell? Is that Kevin Durant from the NBA?"

"Yup, that's him, the guy who carries a little backpack and plays innocent."

(Author note: In 2009, after a game, Kevin Durant told reporters his dream was to drink Scarlett Johansson's bathwater. In 2010, he doubled down on Twitter: "Scarlett Johansson, I'd drink your bathwater.")

Scarlett, unfazed, outright rejected the NBA star's bizarre request. But honestly, Durant's odd fantasy wasn't even the strangest. In the original timeline, Scarlett once wiped her nose on a tissue during a BBC interview, with the camera zooming in for a close-up, emphasizing that she'd wiped twice. The tissue, supposedly carrying both her and Samuel L. Jackson's (a.k.a. the "Motherfucker" guy) cold viruses from filming Iron Man, was auctioned off for $5,300, with proceeds going to charity.

Meanwhile, Robert Downey Jr.'s manager, Jeff Raymond, was negotiating a massive $30 million deal plus a 10% box office share for his next project. Downey was thrilled about it.

Amber Heard, however, missed her chance to connect with Martin after the premiere, leaving her filled with regret.

After the screening, Martin returned to his Beverly Hills estate with Scarlett. Nicole Kidman, Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Alba, Doris, and Anne Hathaway were all there, making for a lively scene. Everyone gathered around Martin's son, Connor, cooing and laughing. The little boy had become the new center of attention, eclipsing even Martin.

"Oh, Connor's getting cuter by the day!"

"His nose is just like Nicole's!"

"This kid's gonna be a heartbreaker when he grows up."

"For sure, just like his dad."

Martin, meanwhile, was comforting Nicole, stroking her gently.

"Thinking about a comeback yet?" he asked.

"Not yet. The little guy still needs me, and honestly, I'm still too fat right now."

While Martin's home buzzed with warmth, Amber and Tasya were having their own conversation.

...

"What's up?" Amber asked softly.

Tasya sighed. "Lost a job opportunity. No one in L.A. or New York will hire him. I heard he's off in Africa shooting chimps now."

"Wow, that's rough! Wait, when you helped Miranda, was it because you had a thing for her?"

Amber's question made Tasya smirk. She'd indeed had a fleeting interest in Miranda, but thankfully, she hadn't acted on it. The downfall of that lighting tech woke her up. After digging deeper, she learned Miranda's backer was none other than Martin Meyers.

"Don't overthink it, darling. That was before I met you. Now, I'm all about you. Alright, enough talk—let's sleep."

Iron Man 2's box office soared, but it had little to do with Martin. Aside from being happy for his friend, he shifted focus to promoting Inception. Leonardo DiCaprio was also pouring energy into the campaign.

On the road, Leo opened up to Martin about the film. "Honestly, Martin [Scorsese]'s movie had me totally lost. It's already a non-linear narrative, and he deliberately scrambled the timeline during shooting. Me, Mark Ruffalo, and the others had no clue whether we were filming a scene before or after the main action."

"I think Scorsese went a bit overboard with the mind-bending stuff," Martin said. "I'm skeptical how many average viewers will get this movie. A modest box office wouldn't surprise me."