Howard checks Tony out of the hospital before the doctors want him to leave. Pepper tries to argue with him, but he refuses to listen. Tony doesn't care when he leaves, as long as they allow him too. That had been his greatest fear once he had woken up, that they would never let him leave. That he'd be forced to live in a hospital for the rest of his life. So when Howard enters his room for the first time since he's woke up and tells him to get ready to leave within five minutes, he does as he's told.
Once they're in the car together, and only when, Howard speaks to Tony.
"You know, I'm not really in any place to lecture you."
"You're right, you're not." Tony tightens his grip on the steering wheel, an old memory coming to the surface of his brain.
"But, Tony, I want you to know. I care."
"Look me in the eye and tell me that, then maybe I'll believe you." Tony continues to stare straight ahead, even though the car is stopped in traffic.
"I forgot how difficult you can be." Howard chuckles as if realizing who his son is for the first time.
"I forgot how much of an ass you can be." Tony lies.
"No you didn't." Howard surprisingly picks up on Tony's attempted deception. "Tony, I know I've done wrong by you. And I'll be making that up to you until the day I die, but I need you to realize that your life is one worth living."
"You know nothing about my life." Tony presses down hard on the accelerator, turning off onto a back road to go around traffic. After he had become conscious and the press managed to get wind of what had happened, Pepper and Howard had had him transferred to a center outside of the city. He had stayed only long enough to make sure he was detoxed and in good (at least for Tony) health.
"I know more than you think I do."
"Try me."
"I know about Afghanistan."
"No one knows about Afghanistan, other than I was taken prisoner there and I managed to make an Iron Man suit while in a cave."
"Well I know that much than. And I'd like to know more." Tony snorts. "I know about Pepper."
"Only because she told you."
"Doesn't it say something that I listened to the hysterical woman who I knew nothing about, other than you were formerly romantically involved with her." Tony only grunts.
"Whatever helps you sleep at night." Tony sounds more and more like the teenager he used to be.
"Son..." Tony cuts off whatever Howard was going to say by turning on the radio. He puts his favorite AC/DC cd into the player and turns it up as loud as it will go. Like all his cars, Jarvis is installed, so no matter what Howard can't turn down the volume. Which eliminates any possibility of them continuing a conversation.