theo and his mother never settled anywhere for very long. this had less to do with the nature of her work as a teacher and more to do with her own personal preference, a restlessness that made it difficult for them to put down roots anywhere for too long. while it was rough going at times for theo, especially during high school, he has since appreciated the experiences he was afforded, both in the states and overseas as a global citizen from a young age.
together they lived in las vegas, london, quebec, singapore, portland, amsterdam, colorado, boston, new york - just to name a few. some places were barely home for a few months, and others a year or more. along with them often came his mother's brother, charming and vibrant and perpetually down on his luck. theo looked up to him more than anything as a father figure he'd been searching for. while theo's mom encouraged his love of reading, his uncle challenged him to more difficult homework, motivated him to be more adventurous, introduced him to his favorite historical events, and taught him how to surf.
theo became settled out on his own, finally, taking space in new york to attend nyu. he wanted to follow in his mother's footsteps for a teaching career that could take him places, even though it was a struggle to decide on which path he wanted to take. he settled on history, after considering mathematics and sciences, as he'd always been a smart kid with a sponge for a brain, ahead of every class and well suited to homeschooling and special study groups.
he belted through school, young in each of his years, coming out at the end of it all with a doctorate in history, and accepted a position as a professor at ucsf. theo had no problem packing up and moving back across to the other side of the country - he didn't even own that much to move, in the end. theo's uncle was arrested in his first year of teaching for mob connections, and while it rocked theo's reality he became convinced that he'd been framed. in his spare time, theo researches the case, and looks for discrepancies.
more recently, theo has been hired as a consultant for the csa in a role that might seem unexciting but is very thrilling for him in checking and cross-checking and inspecting records both current and historical of known supers. he's busy between that and his classes, and all the time he spends reading, hobby coding, gaming, surfing, and falling over the shoelaces he forgot to tie.