"Wait!" Ethan Hayes heard a familiar voice as he pressed the button to close the elevator door. Just before it shut, Gwen Stacy slipped inside.
"Thanks," Gwen said with a smile, only for her expression to freeze when she saw Ethan standing there. Her eyes widened in surprise.
"Ethan Hayes? What are you doing here?"
Ethan gave her a cold glance and pressed the button for the lower parking level.
Gwen pouted, clearly remembering the lecture she had given Ethan yesterday. It seemed that her words had left him indifferent. She shifted slightly, leaning against the edge of the elevator and staring at the ceiling, trying to ignore him. But her curiosity was growing.
What was Ethan doing in the same building as her? There were only two apartments on the top floor of her complex. And then it clicked—her mother had mentioned that Mr. Smith had sold his apartment recently. The new neighbor had bought the entire place but hadn't introduced themselves yet.
Gwen began to piece things together. Ethan had always kept a low profile at school. The only thing she really knew about him was that his parents had been killed two years ago, and he was supposedly living with a cousin in Chinatown. But she had seen him in Hell's Kitchen multiple times, which was a dangerous place in Manhattan, even for someone with a cop for a father.
How had Ethan, a classmate she barely knew, ended up in a high-end apartment complex right next to her own? And where did he get the money to buy Mr. Smith's apartment?
The elevator dinged, arriving at the second floor. Ethan stepped out, a faint smile on his lips. Yesterday, he had hinted to Gwen that she didn't really know him, subtly suggesting that she should. And now, finding him as her new neighbor had piqued her curiosity even more.
In the elevator, Gwen was left pondering. Her curiosity had been sparked, and the seed Ethan had planted in her mind was starting to grow. She wanted to understand him, and the mystery around him only drew her in further.
"What is this trick called?" Ethan mused to himself. "Playing hard to get?"
As he walked down the hallway, Gwen's voice called after him. "Ethan, wait!"
Ethan glanced at his watch. "Gwen, if you don't head down now, you're going to miss the bus and be late for school," he said without turning around.
Gwen crossed her arms, clearly still annoyed. "Hmph, Ethan, don't you think you owe me an apology for what happened yesterday?"
Ethan paused, feigning confusion. "For what?"
"After school, you drove past me and splashed dirty water all over me!" Gwen exclaimed, her hands resting on her hips. "Hannah saw it too."
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "I did? If that's the case, then I apologize. It was unintentional."
Gwen's irritation faded slightly at his apology, but she wasn't quite done. "You have no idea how many people stared at me on my way home!"
Ethan offered her a small smile. "It seems I caused you more trouble than I realized. How about I treat you to dinner to make up for it?"
Gwen felt her frustration dissolve at his words. How could a man not want to apologize when faced with her cute, angry face? And besides, a dinner invitation was exactly what she wanted. She had to admit, she was eager to get to know her mysterious neighbor better.
"Fine, I'll take you up on that dinner offer," Gwen agreed. "But today, you're giving me a ride to school. And after class, you're driving me home."
"Just today," Ethan responded, unlocking the car.
"Just today? Cheapskate," Gwen muttered, but she climbed into the passenger seat happily enough.
The ride was mostly quiet, except for the soft hum of pop music playing in the background. Ethan was deliberately keeping the conversation light, playing it cool to keep Gwen intrigued. Meanwhile, Gwen was trying to figure out how to start a conversation with the enigmatic boy beside her. She couldn't help but feel like he was a bit too distant, too composed. It was almost annoying.
When they reached the school, Ethan finally broke the silence. "I'll wait for you here after class."
Gwen gave him a playful glare. "You're so boring, Ethan."
She slammed the car door as she got out, the loud sound drawing the attention of nearby students. As soon as they saw her, whispers began to spread.
"Did Gwen Stacy just get out of a car with a guy?"
"Who's the guy?"
Hannah appeared behind Ethan and grinned. "So, is Gwen your prom date?"
Ethan smiled. "I'm not much for social events. Even prom isn't my thing."
Hannah glanced at Gwen's retreating figure. "What if Gwen invites you?"
Ethan thought for a moment. "Gwen's beautiful. I can't think of any guy in school who could say no to her."
Hannah laughed. "You might want to be prepared. Something special always happens at prom."
Ethan knew that prom was more than just a dance—it was practically a public declaration of interest in American culture. But his mind wasn't focused on school events. He had bigger things on his mind: money.
The stock for Stark Industries had leveled out after the massive drop, and Ethan knew this was the perfect time to get back in. His urge to re-invest was growing stronger. He needed Stark's success to build his wealth. This was the key to growing his fortune, and if he missed this opportunity, he'd be left with more… unconventional ways to increase his wealth.
"Gangsters, maybe? Could taking money from gangsters increase my wealth and desire points?" Ethan pondered. The thought of Hell's Kitchen flashed through his mind. If Jessica Jones' intel was accurate, his revenge plan was coming together. It was a day he'd waited for a long time.
"Jessica has been quiet these past two days," he thought, wondering if she felt awkward after what had happened between them. But Ethan wasn't about to let that go. No woman he conquered was going to slip away from him.
Tonight, he would pay Hell's Kitchen a visit.
With his mind made up, Ethan lost all interest in the day's classes. When he reached his locker, he noticed the defaced pattern had been cleaned. Fleischer, the school bully, stayed far away, too scared to even make eye contact. Ethan decided to let him go—for now.
He asked his teacher for early dismissal and left the school, his mind already focused on his next steps.
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"Mr. Smith, thank you very much for your help this time."
"It's my honor to work with you, Mr. Hayes," Mr. Smith, the manager of Wells Fargo Bank, replied, shaking hands with Ethan Hayes.
This trip had been worthwhile. Ethan had just mortgaged his shares of Stark Industries to secure a loan from Wells Fargo Bank—300 million USD to be precise. It was a stroke of luck that Mr. Smith was already familiar with him, which made the process much smoother.
Even in the West, having connections can make things easier.
As Smith escorted Ethan out, he couldn't help but admire the young man. This wasn't the first time Smith had interacted with Ethan—he was a regular client, after all. And even if Ethan's investments didn't pan out, the value of his shares in Stark Industries was more than enough to cover the loan. The bank wouldn't lose a cent.
At this point, Ethan had 800 million USD in his hands, including the loan. No matter what happened, he could always repay the 300 million and the interest by the end of the year. But Smith knew that Ethan wasn't planning to lose. His goal was clear: acquire as many shares of Stark Industries as possible.
"What an amazing young man," Smith thought, reflecting on the stock of Stark Industries. Ethan had shorted the company with 20 times leverage, and now he was pouring funds back into the market to buy at the bottom. The next time any good news came out about Stark Industries, Ethan was positioned to make a killing.
"Should I buy some shares myself?" Smith pondered. Stark Industries wasn't as bad off as the media suggested. Tony Stark, the genius behind the company, had a knack for technological innovation. And as Stark Industries moved away from weapons manufacturing, the blue ocean of civilian technology markets—smartphones, electric vehicles, artificial intelligence—was ripe for the taking. These markets were growing faster than the military sector, and Tony Stark had the technical prowess to dominate them.
As a bank executive, Smith also knew that Stark had billions stashed away in overseas accounts—secret funds that weren't on the books. Stark Industries might appear weak, but it was far from it.
Smith quickly opened the stock information for Stark Industries. The stock was down 5.1%, but the trading volume was stabilizing. Someone was buying large quantities of shares, but they were doing it quietly.
"300 million is no small sum," Smith noted. "Ethan's clearly betting big—he'll likely use futures leverage for higher gains."
Smith logged into Interactive Brokers and, as he expected, saw betting orders in place. For the brokerage platform, whether clients went long or short didn't matter. It was all about facilitating trades.
Ethan had transferred 300 million USD to his securities account and used 200 million of it with 20 times leverage to buy long contracts worth 4 billion USD. With the entire market bearish on Stark Industries, his bullish contracts were quickly filled.
The stock was hovering around $5.6 per share, and Ethan had already lost over 2 million USD on his initial stock position. But with 140 million USD left in his account, he wasn't worried. He transferred 4 million USD to his bank account for daily expenses and then used the remaining funds to buy more shares in the market—this time without leverage. He planned to hold these shares long-term.
Even if the futures contracts didn't pan out, his stock holdings would protect him. It was a safe hedge.
Soon, Ethan had secured an additional 24 million shares of Stark Industries. As he bought, others followed, and the stock price quickly rebounded to $6 per share, surpassing yesterday's close.
With an average cost of $5.7 per share, Ethan was now sitting on a paper profit of 32.1 million USD. His futures contracts, even more lucrative, were up 7%, netting him an additional 280 million USD.
"Futures really are the way to make money," Ethan thought. But he knew that if he hadn't ignited the market with his aggressive buying, the institutional investors wouldn't have followed. It was his moves that had set everything in motion.
At this moment, Ethan had become the third-largest shareholder of Stark Industries, holding 1.07% of the company. With future dividends and stock price growth, his stake would bring him billions.
Meanwhile, at Stark Industries, Obadiah Stane was furious.
"Find out who ruined my plan!" Stane barked.
For weeks, Stark Industries' stock had been plummeting, and Stane had been quietly pulling the strings behind the scenes, manipulating the media to amplify the negative news. He knew Stark Industries had over 30 billion USD in cash sitting in overseas accounts, money that wasn't publicly disclosed.
"Mr. Stane, a Chinese investor named Ethan Hayes holds 1% of the company's shares. Should we take action?" one of his aides suggested.
Stane calmed himself. "For now, it doesn't matter. Holding 1% won't affect me. I'm already the largest shareholder, and I've secured enough institutional support to remove Tony at the next shareholders' meeting."
Stane knew that the key to his plan was obtaining Tony Stark's arc reactor and armor technology. He could steal the arc reactor, but Tony's armor was protected by J.A.R.V.I.S., making it much harder to access.
"Continue buying as many shares of Stark Industries as possible. We still have funds left. I want to solidify my control over the company," Stane ordered.
Stane had spent a fortune manipulating the stock, but tomorrow, Wall Street institutions would step in, and his actions would be reflected in the market. If the stock price continued to fall, his position would weaken. But if it stabilized or rose, he could cement his influence within the company.
Once he had control, he would reopen the weapons manufacturing division, and when the arc reactor and armor were fully developed, he would be hailed as a hero. The stock price would skyrocket, doubling his wealth.
As for Ethan Hayes? Stane thought with a sneer. "I'll let him make some money now, but once I have what I need, I'll take everything from him."
Ethan, unaware of Stane's intentions, was focused on his own plans. He had completed his stock layout, and even if the stock price dropped further, he had an ace up his sleeve: the arc reactor technology.
If Stark Industries continued to fall, he would leak the news of miniaturized cold fusion energy to the media. That would send the stock soaring, and there was nothing Stane could do to stop it.
"Stane wants to play dirty? Well, he won't get away with it," Ethan thought with a grin.
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