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Most days Newt makes good use of the time in the afternoon when Avery’s still in robotics club. She’ll usually send a text when they’re ending for the day and he’ll either walk the two blocks to the school or drive when it’s raining or he’s feeling lazy. Tonight, though, he’s had more than enough time and the club is running far later than any extracurricular for middle school students should. He’s moments away from dialing his daughter and insisting she comes home when she texts him, letting him know they lost track of time and can he please come pick her up now because she’s very hungry.
He drives, only because he’s very hungry too and it’s a Thursday so he doesn’t feel like cooking. Instead, they go to the pizza place and Newt debates how to be the firm parent. The problem is, when you’re a single parent, you have to be all of the types of parent at once. Fun dad. Stern dad. Concerned dad. Dad who’s very good at painting nails. Dad who’s super not good at doing hair. Dad who worries that he’s teaching his daughter gender essentialist bullshit because he buys her Barbies. Dad who worries when Avery’s staying late for club activities when she’s only fourteen.
“What were you, uh, doing at robotics club so late?” Newt asks, swiping at some grease on his Weezer t-shirt. There are worse things to lose to the war of good pizza.
“Oh, we’re working on our robot for the big competition next weekend. Dr. G said we could go home if we want to, but that anyone who stayed would have a better chance of controlling it during the big fight.”
Dr. G is an enigmatic figure in Newt’s life, a man who was not present at parent-teacher night due to a disdain for small talk (allegedly) and who gave Newt’s very brilliant child her first B in math. Newt figures that anyone who teaches math couldn’t be particularly cool or interesting, but Avery and her friends list him among their favorite teachers. He seems hard on the students, but not overly so, at least judging by the fact that Avery did not cry when she received the aforementioned B.
“If you’re gonna stay late again, you gotta text me around the time you normally come home,” Newt says. “I know you like the robot club, but your schoolwork comes first.”
“Okay, okay.” Avery doesn’t look up at him as she picks a piece of pineapple off of her pizza. She only ever wants a few pieces, instead taking the excess and dumping them on Newt’s slices.
“You’ve probably got about an hour of homework from Dr. G on top of everything, too,” Newt says. “That man really doesn’t remember what it’s like to be a kid, huh?”
Avery shrugs. “He’s pretty cool, actually, when you get past the weird accent and stuff. I’ll get my homework done in time, don’t worry.”
“You don’t have any papers to write you haven’t told me about, right?” Sometimes when Newt opens his mouth to speak, the only thing he can hear is his father’s voice spilling out of him. Newt was a very dedicated student- in the subject he was hyperfocusing on at the time. Everything else he slid through on his natural intelligence. He didn’t want Avery to rely on being a bright kid, he wanted her to take the time to understand, to look for all of the possibilities for herself in the world.
“No, dad. I’ve just got some math problems and reading to do,” Avery answers.
“That same awful book?”
“Yeah, the same awful book.”
Earlier in the school year, Newt went toe to toe with Avery’s English teacher on how the curriculum needs to stop focusing entirely on boring and reductive works by cis white men, but the complaints only added one book to the curriculum. It was Avery that asked him to take a step back, to not make things awkward in the classroom, and despite his desire to stage a protest, Newt realized this was not a hill he would die on. Instead, he gives himself a small victory by turning a blind eye when Avery chooses to SparkNotes the books instead of reading them if she finds them unacceptable.
The late nights continue for the next week, but at least Avery alerts Newt around the time she’d usually go home. If it were more than a week or so until the competition, Newt might say something, but he doesn’t want to punish his daughter for her enthusiasm. It’s genetic, he assumes, this overwhelming drive and passion for whatever she’s studying at the time. Newt’s father has it, his uncle has it, he has it. It’s a Geiszler family stand-by at this point in time.
Two nights before the competition, though, it’s nearly nine and Newt decides to drive to the school himself. It’s an absurd amount of time to be late, or to expect the students to be working. He sits in his car, steaming at this mysterious and allegedly cool Dr. G, only brightening when a sheepish Avery slips into the passenger seat.
“Sorry, dad. We were doing the finishing touches and Dr. G asked if any of us were able to stay late.”
“Avery, honey. You can’t stay this late anymore.”
“Dad, that’s not cool. Kids who are on sports team are at practice until seven or eight most nights and-”
“And I don’t necessarily think that’s right either. You’ve got to focus on your schoolwork.”
“Calynn’s mom doesn’t say anything about her staying late and she has better grades than I do.”
Calynn’s mom is having two separate affairs and probably doesn’t notice her daughter isn’t coming home on time. Telling Avery this would do nothing but hurt her, though. She likes Calynn’s mom. It takes everything in Newt’s power to bite his tongue.
“I want you to be happy and I want you to do the things you want to do. I understand you’re not a little kid anymore, but this is asking way too much from you. Doesn’t this man have a life?”
“Actually Dr. G has a-”
“I know he has a life.” Newt sighs. Perhaps he's being a bit harsh. “Just after the fight, we're gonna have to set some rules about how late you can stay out on school nights.”
“Yeah, yeah. You know most kids have this conversation with their dads because they're sneaking out to drink or kiss boys or whatever, not building robots.”
This has never dawned on Newt. He wasn't sneaking out to kiss boys at her age, but it wasn't from lack of interest.
“Robots are cooler than boys,” Newt says, squeezing Avery’s shoulder.
“Can we just go home, dad?” she asks. “I’m starved.”
“Sure, there’s a plate waiting for you.”
It’s not so bad, Newt thinks, for a kid to be this passionate about something. After all, if his dad hadn’t encouraged his own obsession with biology from a very young age, Newt certainly wouldn’t be where he is today in his career.
There’s an alarmingly large amount of people at the robot fight. Apparently Newt’s missed a memo that robots are cool now. He’s learning in all of the years since he’s become a dad that whatever he thinks is or isn’t cool is wrong. He could literally guess at random and it would be absolutely wrong, and he used to be cool. Or he used to think he was cool, he was in a punk rock band! There’s very little more cool than that.
He’s found himself a good seat, one that’ll allow him to watch the match-ups without embarrassing Avery with his enthusiasm. The main lesson he’s learned from his own father’s earnest interest in his passions is that it can be considered a bit embarrassing, so he’s learned to keep it to a minimum. For example, the sign he’s made to support Avery is rather small and he can keep it down when she’s not helping control a robot that’s definitely going to crush all of the other robots. His father would have had a giant sign and potential a bullhorn or something. In fact, his father had gotten kicked out of his fair share of science fairs for being disruptive, leaving Newt’s shame faced uncle to film the entire event.
Across the room, he catches sight of Avery and waves at her eagerly. She returns it shyly, but with a smile. Newt’s heart does that weird but totally normal proud dad clench that it does when he’s exceptionally proud of her (which is often.) When he glances away, he catches sight of a very attractive man near Avery holding a cane in one hand and the hand of a small child in the other. Newt’s just enough of a romantic fool to want to approach this stranger in the off chance that he’s a single parent and romantically available. Or sexually available. Or available for a quick chat. It’s been a long while, after all.
The man does deposit the child with a woman, however, the woman with the child does look a good deal like the man and that could mean… Newt has to refocus himself. He’s there to support his daughter, not to find a date. Even if it’s been a few years since he’s had a good date. Being a single parent isn’t the easiest for dating, but Newt doesn’t pretend that’s the only reason he’s still single. He doesn’t hide his eccentricities, his brash nature, or loud opinions. He’s also at this weird disadvantage where he has a teenager daughter but hasn’t really been in a very serious relationship, which makes things all the more terrifying.
The fights go on for a bit longer than Newt’s attention span can usually handle, but he’s leaning forward so eagerly, phone in hand, as Avery’s robot crushes the competition. (Once quite literally.) It’s only after he’s watched a few matches that Newt’s realized that his mysterious man sits rather close to the team. He wonders if this is another parent with worse boundary issues than he has, or if this is purely coincidence. Either way, he accidentally catches the eye of the man a few too many times. The only natural thing to do in this situation is wink at him.
Newt doesn’t approach until Avery has the gold medal in hand though, stepping forward to pull her into an embrace and kiss the top of her head. It’s amazing how to someone else, this could seem so insignificant, but he’s prouder than he’s ever been of any of his own accomplishments.
“You did so good, kiddo,” Newt says softly. “I think we should celebrate with some Chinese takeout, don’t you?”
“It wasn’t just me, there’s three other kids on the team.”
“Yeah, but you’re the best of ‘em.”
Avery rolls her eyes, and then pauses when her eyes catch on something. The man, who’s now standing beside the woman and child. The woman in question is almost definitely a sibling, given the level of family resemblance, if she’s not, the man is a complete narcissist. He looks a bit pale, but otherwise even more handsome than Newt had guessed from across the room.
“You must be Avery’s father,” the man says, extending his hand to Newt.
“Oh, right. Dad, this is Dr. G,” Avery cuts in, as Newt shakes the stranger’s hand. Of course the handsome stranger is actually the man who’s been running Newt’s child ragged.
“It’s Dr. Gottlieb,” the man corrects with only a mild annoyance.
“Newton Geiszler. Also doctor, but call me Newt,” Newt answers as he pulls his hand away. “You’re the one who’s been keeping my kid way too late at school then.”
“I haven’t been keeping anyone.” Newt hates his smug accent. “If students choose to stay late for the club, it’s entirely voluntary.”
“These kids are fourteen years old, dude, they don’t always know their limits with stuff when they’re super into it. You gotta impose boundaries.”
“No, I don’t believe that’s my job. I think that’s yours as her father to impose. My job is to ensure the success of the robotics club and to inspire the members to pursue their passion for the field.”
“You literally sound like a boring, stuffy professor right now, which I know a lot about because I work with them.”
Newt watches as Avery leans down to talk to the child (Dr. G’s child? Or perhaps a niece or nephew?) in a familiar tone. They light up when Avery’s talking to them, eagerly babbling on, the way excited children of about five do.
“Yes, thank you. I’m fully trained to be a boring, stuffy professor, so I do know what I’m talking about when it comes to these matters,” Dr. Gottlieb continues. “It’s a shame you don’t know how to behave the same.”
“Listen, dude. All I’m asking is that you take a step back and maybe set a hard limit on when you send the kids home.”
“I’ll consider it,” he answers in a way that implies he won’t consider it at all.
They’re both saved from awkwardness by Avery standing back up and moving back over to them. Newt wraps an arm around her shoulder, pulling her in close.
“Dr. G said I can babysit Grey sometimes,” Avery says, looking up at Newt. He’s realizing for not the first time that Avery won’t be looking up at him for much longer.
“Grey is-”
“My son,” Dr. Gottlieb cuts in. “He often joins us for our club meetings after school and he’s taken a liking to your daughter. I rely heavily on my sister for help in watching him but, of course, she has her own life outside of mine.”
“That should be fine,” Newt answers tightly. It appears the enigmatic Dr. G is here to stay in Avery’s life.
They order a frankly outlandish amount of Chinese food when they get home and sit cross legged on the living room floor, poking into each other’s containers. Newt feels whole in these moments, like he’s got the most perfect life with his daughter.
“You didn’t tell me Dr. G was so…” Newt begins.
“Cute?” Avery supplies.
“Young.” Newt grimaces. “You don’t think he’s cute right?”
Avery laughs and jabs at Newt’s lo mein. “God no, he’s so old. But you think he’s cute. You blushed a bit when he introduced himself.”
“I did no such thing.” Newt retaliates by stealing a piece of her chicken. “I just sort of expected this middle aged guy, you know? Not a younger guy with a little kid.”
“You and Dr. G have a lot in common,” Avery explains. “That’s kinda why I like him so much as a teacher.”
Newt grimaces at the thought. They’re both cute, maybe, and have doctorates and German last names, but beyond that they’re really not the same.
“Don’t give me that look, Dad,” Avery says. “He’s a single dad and he cares a lot about his kid, but he also really cares about his work a lot. He’s so into robots, he gets that face like you get when you talk about octopuses.”
“Octopi.”
“You’re the one who always says it’s important that I find male role models who are actually worth looking up to so I don’t end up holding up some ideal of toxic masculinity and I think he’s a good example of that.”
“Technically I always say that it’s more important to have female role models because society is going to always give you a harder time as a woman and-”
“Plus, he’s gay,” Avery interrupts. “He’s got this little rainbow pin he wears on his blazer sometimes, it’s super cute. I was telling him the joke you always tell about your bi tie and he laughed so hard.”
“The bi tie is legendary, Avery. Even straight people laugh at that one.”
“I think he’s also-” Avery bites her lip, the way she often does when navigating tough conversations. “Well, he’s got another pin and I don’t like to assume and I don’t want to like...out him, you know?”
“Oh,” Newt says, realization dawning. “I mean, it’s not good to assume but if he’s wearing something that’s declaring that he’s trans that’s a whole different thing.”
“So, yeah. You two have a lot more in common than you think.”
“That’s still sort of superficial stuff, kiddo. But I’m glad you found someone almost as cool as your dad to look up to.”
“Oh, he’s not cool cool,” Avery answers, putting down her container to poke at some dumplings. Apparently there was a difference in types of cool that Newt was not picking up on. “He’s a big dork, just like you.”
Newt’s too impressed by how sharp Avery is to have a retort.
Rather than simmer in his dislike for Dr. G, now that he’s got a handsome face to the name, Newt decides to extend an olive branch. He does this by stopping by at the next meeting to bring the kids some snacks. Gottlieb sits quietly at his desk, supervising while the kids work on schematics for their next project, and his son sits on the floor next to him, reading quietly through a picture book.
Shoving his hands in his pockets, Newt saunters over to Gottlieb, leaning against the desk. He’s grading papers and probably does not need the distraction, but Newt’s curious to know more about this man. Sure enough, he spots the two pins on the lapel of his frankly shabby looking blazer.
“Do you oversee any other clubs or activities?” Newt asks curiously.
“No, I don’t have the time. I stopped working at universities when I adopted Grey because they already took up too much of my time.” Dr. Gottlieb leans back, pulling off his reading glasses.
“I was wondering if you used to teach at the college level before this,” he remarks. Newt knows he did, because he was able to find that information in a simple Google search.
“Avery says you’re a professor.”
“Biology,” Newt says. “Specialty in marine biology. Well, my main specialty. I have several degrees.”
“She must have been very young when you were in school.” A lot of people say this statement with a degree of judgment, but it’s surprisingly neutral coming from Dr. Gottlieb.
“I had to take a break from my third PhD to have her, yeah.”
Gottlieb mouths the words “to have her” a few times before he fully processes the information and then something in him lights up.
“That must have been very stressful. I waited until after school, as you can guess.”
“Oh, it was. But it was sort of...the best timing for me in a lot of ways and my dad and uncle were willing to help, so I went for it. Don’t regret it for a moment.”
“I don’t see how you could.” Gottlieb glances over at where the students are working. “Your daughter is very bright but more importantly she’s very passionate about her work and seems to enjoy learning for the sake of learning, which is a rare treat in this day and age.”
“She’s pretty great like that. It’s a family trait, to be honest, but I think she’s really perfected it in a way I never could.”
Newt doesn’t even realize that he’s half sitting on the desk until it’s too late. He picks up the nameplate on the desk, tracing his fingers along it.
“Could you put that down please, Newton?”
He does as instructed. “What does the H stand for then? Henry? Harold? Hagrid?”
“Hermann.”
“I like that, it suits you.”
Avery looks over at them then, and Newt’s glad for it, because he’s starting to lean in a bit too close to the other man. He snaps back up and collects himself.
“I’ve been thinking about what you said about enforcing a more strict end time for the students,” Dr. Gottlieb- Hermann remarks. “And perhaps it has some merit. These students are all very eager and will stay later than necessary or healthy to complete the project.”
“That’s all I can ask for, as a parent. I’m sure the other parents appreciate it.”
“The other parents aren’t as involved, but I’ve had a complaint or so.” Hermann pointedly doesn’t look at Newt. “These are some of the brightest minds I’ve worked with and I don’t want their schoolwork or other interests to suffer for my sake.”
Newt stays until the end of the meeting, but rather than pester Hermann he takes the chance to help Grey with his reading. Grey, despite looking nothing like his father, has still mastered an oddly exasperated expression that Newt finds endearing in its own way. When he’s had enough of Newt’s enthusiasm, he climbs up into his father’s lap and lets Hermann read quietly to him for a few moments. Newt’s charmed in a whole new way.
After asking Avery’s permission, Newt starts to stop by the robotics club every few meetings, usually with snacks. He’s not an expert on robots themselves, but he is good enough with tinkering that he manages to be of some real assistance. (If nothing else, everyone seems grateful for the snacks.) When he’s not of use, he’ll sit and talk to Hermann or help Grey with whatever he’s working on. He feels an odd pang of longing for the days when Avery was so little and relied on him for help like this.
The school year slides by and Newt can’t deny that the initial attraction to Hermann is still there, but he’s coping with it well enough. It’s not particularly professional to even consider dating one of his daughter’s teachers, especially given his inability to keep dates around for long. It’s sloppy, he knows, and would end in a one night stand and probably not much more, and make things awkward for Avery in her last year of middle school. That’s the last thing Newt wants for his daughter. Avery, though, seems to have other ideas.
“Dr. G has a crush on you,” Avery observes casually, as she’s doing homework one evening. Newt nearly drops the ladle he’s using to dish out their soup for dinner.
“He what now?” Newt squeaks.
“Has a crush on you. He talks about you all the time to me, and he doesn’t like...pry, but I’ve dropped in that you’re single a few times and he always seems very pleased at that.”
“Don’t do that, Avery.” Newt turns and slides a bowl in front of her, making sure she pushes her homework aside.
“Why not?”
“Because he’s your teacher, I can’t really date your teacher.” He can ignore the fact that he hasn’t liked someone quite this much in a long time.
“He’s not gonna be my teacher forever, Dad. In fact, he’s only my teacher for another month or so, then I think you gotta shoot your shot.”
Newt laughs. “Shoot my shot?”
“You know. Ask him out. Tell him that you’ve got a big crush on him too.”
“I do not have a big crush on Hermann,” Newt defends.
Avery gives him a look, the exact look that reminds Newt that he’ll never be as smart as a teenage girl. “Dad. You’re so into him, it’s obvious. You were winking at him at the very first robot fight.”
“You saw that?” Newt sputters.
“Half the room saw that. People who weren’t in your line of sight saw that. It’s alright, I like him already. He’s got a great kid. You’ve already gone through half the battle of introducing him to your family.”
“It’s not that simple, kiddo.” Newt slides into his seat across from Avery. He can’t exactly lay thirty years of self worth issues down at the feet of his daughter. He can’t explain how many of his relationships were so short lived because someone simple wasn’t interested. That’s not her burden to bear, nor her information to know about.
“You like him. He likes you. You both deserve to have someone in your lives who makes you happy.”
“I’ve got someone in my life who makes me happy, and so does he.”
She snorts. “Please don’t with this mushy dad shit, Dad.”
“And please don’t with this saying shit shit, Avery.” Newt’s trying not to smile, as he usually does when reprimanding Avery for swearing.
“One day I’m gonna go off to college or go live in a van or whatever and I think it would be great to know that you have someone to keep you company.”
“Hey now, I raised you better than believing in the lie the American dream sells,” he teases around his mouthful of soup.
Avery shakes her head fondly and takes a few moments to focus on eating. Newt doesn’t really know what he’d do if he had someone, he realizes. He doesn’t know how he’d react to waking up next to someone or having someone around to help with Avery. But he wants it, despite everything he wants it, and having a specific person to focus on only makes him want it more.
“The thing is, Avery,” Newt says, once he’s pushed his bowl aside. “I do like him. But you’ve seen how dating works for adults- I could see him once, or twice, or...you get the point. And then that’s that. And he’s someone you look up to a lot, so I don’t want to ruin that for you.”
“I don’t need him to look up to, though. I’ve already got a really great male role model, and you’re the one who says I need to focus on women role models and all that.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Plus, best case scenario, I get a really cool stepdad and a stepbrother and maybe you two can have more kids together.”
Newt nearly chokes on his mouthful of food. Not only does it sound ridiculous coming from Avery, but he’s already got so much of what he wants in his life that asking for more sounds greedy.
Newt remembers thinking middle school graduation was a sham at the time of his own graduation. He was also a few years younger than his peers, so it was awkward. For Avery, it’s different. She has classmates and friends who love her and teachers who adore her. (And one or two that find her too loud or brash but really that’s their loss.) Suddenly, it’s become a big deal for everyone involved and suddenly Newt’s planning a party and inviting those classmates and friends and teachers.
He finds himself changing about three times before the party, after Avery teases him for wearing his date pants. This is potentially the last time he’ll see Hermann, he realizes, and in a lot of ways it’s now or never. He’s too busy once the party starts playing the role of host to actually focus too much on his romantic past, present, or future thankfully. That is until he hears a familiar voice while attempting to pour out some soda, turning with the bottle in his hands in such a way that it dramatically pours over Hermann’s shirt.
“Oh, fuck!” Newt exclaims. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
“It’s quite alright, Newton,” Hermann says, but he’s got the tone like he’s a bit pissed off.
“Your shirt.”
“My shirt.”
“I can get you another one. If you wanna come to my bedroom with me.”
“To your bedroom.”
“Not for anything untoward!” Newt squeaks. “Just to pick out a clean shirt to wear.”
“Of course, thank you.”
Newt suddenly remembers the piles of dirty clothes on his floor and wonders if he’s left something incriminating on his bed. (Does he really just carelessly leave dildos out so often? Does he want to consider what it says about him if he does?)
Hermann stands awkwardly in the doorway for a moment before he steps in, closing the door behind him. Newt lays out a selection of some of his nicer t-shirts, even if this includes a good deal of band tees.The sour expression on Hermann’s face as he deliberates would be comical if it wasn’t Newt’s fault in the first place.
“Do you want...something else?” Newt offers. “I’ve got some...button-ups, just thought they’d be tight around your shoulders.”
“No, this is fine.” Hermann picks up the softest one, a simple black shirt, and begins to slip out of the soiled shirt. Newt turns around immediately. “You really don’t need to turn away. Nothing you haven’t seen before.”
“I’d assumed- modestly.”
“Please, I grew up in Germany, we have different attitudes about these things.”
When he turns, Hermann is standing shirtless and giving him a smile. Newt blushes as he slips the shirt over his head.
“I admire a lot about you, Newton,” Hermann says as Newt’s collecting the shirts. “You’re protective of your daughter without stifling her. She’s her own, actualized person.”
“Yeah, I learned that treating her like a person achieves that easiest.”
“Take the compliment, I don’t offer them very freely.”
“Alright, I’ll take it.” Newt shoves the things in his closet, then steps away. “I admire you as a parent too, Grey seems like a really happy kid and i think showing him that dads can work hard and be good dads too really means something.”
“It’s a shame we will be seeing less of each other now that Avery’s graduated.”
“We don’t have to. I mean,” Newt takes a moment to collect himself. “We can see each other in a different way. Well, if we’re talking- I’ve been seeing you in this way for a while, but I didn’t want to while you were still Avery’s teacher and I really like you and I think you’re the type of person I could see myself being with and I’m going to shut up now because rejection sucks.”
“Rejection?” Hermann asks. “Are you already assuming I’ll reject you?”
“Listen, I don’t have the best track record of dating. I’ve been raising a sperm donor baby and everyone who does come around ends up thinking I’m a bit-”
“Too much?”
“Yeah.” Newt deflates.
“I don’t think you’re too much. I think you’re more than enough, which is not the same thing. And I am interested in you, I suspect in the same way you’re interested in me, but it would have been a conflict of interest while i was teaching your child. And Avery comes first.”
Newt notices the way Hermann’s awkwardly grasping his cane. He’s nervous, and this makes it all the more endearing.
“But you’re not anymore.”
“No.” Hermann shakes his head. “Nor am I likely to again. So I’d like to take you to dinner, if you don’t mind.”
“If I don’t mind?” Newt teases, stepping closer. “Only if you don’t mind if I kiss you.”
“Not in the least.”
He steps forward a few more steps, closing the distance as he takes Hermann’s head in his hands and kisses him softly. It’s the type of kiss that sends sparks flying, the type that Newt can’t find a precise biological reason for, except to give his heart the opportunity to beat faster. Hermann presses a bit harder into the kiss and Newt’s wondering within moments if he can squeeze in a makeout/grope session without anyone noticing. Naturally, there’s a knock on the door to give him the answer.
“Dad!” Avery calls from the other side of the door. “You can’t hide out at the party you insisted I have.”
They break from the kiss, staring at each other for just a few moments before breaking apart completely. Newt bites back the urge to laugh.
“I’ll be out in a sec, kiddo. Just doing- I’ll be out in a sec.”
Hermann chuckles and lets Newt lead the way out of the room. Avery doesn’t say anything when they leave together, but she does give Newt a thumb’s up the next time she catches his eye. This thing just might work out for him. Newt certainly hopes it does.