Stay At Home Dad
Dieter Schwarz
A stay-at-home dad.
I’m not going to lie,
I was a little jealous.
Dieter and Flicka picked up Alina from the daycare center sometime after midnight and rode home.
The next morning, they all slept late, which he supposed was their new schedule. Waking up next to Flicka was luxurious, though she was lying in bed awake, of course. Evenas a kid, she had needed several hours’ less sleep than Dieter unless she was growing. In Switzerland, after tying one on with Wulfram on weekend leave, Dieter often dragged his butt off the couch to find both of them finished with breakfast and halfway through their mornings. That perky insomnia of theirs must be genetic.
The little townhouse had come complete with a coffeemaker and some mismatcheddishes, so he got himself a cup and wandered after Alina, who was hopping at the door, trying to reach the doorknob.
There was a small patch of gravel that served as a front yard for them, so he walked her down the sidewalk to a small, grassy playground at the end of the block.
To his surprise, two other tiny girls just about Alina’s age were playing on the baby gyms, and a man was loungingon a bench with a cup of coffee beside him, staring at his phone.
The guy lifted a hand when Dieter and Alina walked inside the gate. Alina had decided to be shy that morning and was peeking at the girls from behind Dieter’s leg.
The guy introduced himself as Tinashe Afolabi, and said, “You must be one of the new people at 952 Tam.”
As their address was indeed 952 Tam O’Shanter, Dieter heldout his hand and introduced himself, “RaphaelMirabaud.”
The name almost stuck in his throat, and it should have choked him.
Dieter continued, “You can call me Raphe. Yep. Guilty. We rented that townhouse.”
“Where y’all from?”
“Germany.”
“Oh,guten tag.I took some of that in high school. Don’t remember a damn thing, though. I’m from Missouri.”
“I’ve heard Missouri is nice,” Dieter said,being polite.
Tinashe snorted. “You heard wrong. The economy there sucks. You have to plant a big garden to get enough to eat. Nevada is better.”
“Are both those girls yours? Dieter asked, gesturing to the white toddler dressed in an orange jumper and the black girl, who was wearing a frilly dress.
“Just the black one, Meti,” he said, shoving his dark forearm in Dieter’s general direction,“the one that matches.”
“Right. I noticed that,” Dieter said, nearly cross-eyed from the man’s arm right in front of his face. Americans had no concept of personal space, so he didn’t shove the man’s arm farther away from the end of his nose.
“Good. Being blind is a hard life.” He removed his arm. “The other one is Tabitha. Her mom is a single mother and works days, sometimes twelve hours ata stretch.”
“That’s nice of you to keep her,” Dieter said.
“Oh, she’s paying me. Running an illegal daycare pays more than my job as an electrical engineer did, and it’s cheaper and better for the parents than a big, sterile box full of snotty-nosed kids. I love being a stay-at-home dad. I’d rather cook lunch for babies than calculate electrical currents. I’ve got someresistanceto that, allright. The afternoons are busier, though. I’ve got another boy who comes from five until midnight.”
“Really?” Dieter said, turning on the bench. “Tell me more.”
After a sufficient interrogation that included discipline methods, (“I talk to them about Christian love for their fellow man until they are begging to be good. If that doesn’t work, I’ve got a chair in the corner for time outs.”) providedmeals and snacks, (Which included plenty of green, leafy vegetables, so Suze Meier would approve.) and naps, (“Oh, God, yes. I’ve gotta check my social media.”) Dieter left with three phone numbers to call for references and a very good feeling about the future.
Flicka shook her head when she heard about their conversation. “It’s not right that he has to cheat to make a living.”
“He’s not cheating,”Dieter said. “Raising three toddlers is not easy work.”
“But he has to work outside the system,” Flicka said. “It’s the black market. If I ruled this country, I would change the whole work structure. Child care workers and teachers should be paid what they are worth, rather than have to do without benefits to make decent money. This country needs a living wage paid by the employer, not ‘tips,’which means that the employer is counting on his customers to pay his employees so he doesn’t have to offer a fair wage. It’s bizarre.”
“Yes,Durchlauchtig,you will almost certainly rule the world as a dreaded tyrant and a modern Hannover monarch someday, but in the meantime, we should call these references.”
Flicka snatched the scrap of paper from him. “Fine, but I want to meet this guy first.”
“It’s almost like you care about Alina,” Dieter teased.
Flicka glared at him. “I do care about your daughter, but I care enough to know that I would make a terrible mother or caretaker. I lose my temper too easily, and I run off at the first opportunity. She’s better off with someone else. Trust me, she’s much happier if I just do the logistics. I would be an absolute nightmare for a child.”
