Right at this minute, Avery didnt feel that great. He felt shit and stupid. But then, as he got up to obediently take a shower and stood under the water, he thought, actually, I am good at this. Apollo wouldn't have come here if I was shit at research, Brody notwithstanding. He came here because Avery was too good, if anything. By the time Avery was out of the shower, he was filled with a new righteous vigour. He would write something new, and he'd fucking smash it out of the park. And, he'd break this curse. And show Lyra he wasn't a liar.
Not sure how yet, but he'd do it.
Once he was dressed again, he came back out, and just because he was feeling good towards Armaan, decided to pick up all his empties and throw them away. Just to show him.