nothing to give,

FULL NAME: erick atto NICKNAME(S): rick, ricky DOB: october 4th, 1986 AGE: thirty-three GENDER: cis male  NATIONALITY: american  ETHNICITY: ughandian  HOMETOWN: willow, maine RELIGION: none, raised by roman catholic parents  SPOKEN LANGUAGE(S): english ( fluent ), swahili ( hardy, much to the dismas of his mother ) OCCUPATION: uber driver  /  sober coach  

the one in the back 

hjHKJDHWKE i don’t know what to SAY about erick. he was the boy that had an odd affliction for kung-fu movies that followed him into his teens as much as his poster of jackie chan from the drunk master did ( i wouldn’t be surprised if it’s still in his room to this day, even if it’s been shoved to a corner wrapped back up ). odd hobbies aside, anyone with a problem would end up talking to erick, whether it was because they knew his nature from their own experiences or by a recommendation from a friend. he was a real problem-solver and had a way with people - and most importantly, he kept his mouth shut. 

erick didn’t necessarily need the validation from the dogs about his hobbies n other stuff - he was assured in the fact he liked them and that was kind of ?? all he needed. but knowing that they wanted to be involved ( even if that was just to make him feel involved ) meant a lot to him. he’s a quiet extrovert, for sure, and being around a group of louder personalities kept him balanced. he was definitely not one to miss out on a group outing and probably didn’t ?? ever. you could rely on erick to always be there because spending time in the group would always bring him comfort over being alone. i’m also imagining that he took a lead role in planning a lot of events because of this. if nothing was going on, he wanted to make sure something Was. he’s always found comfort in familiarity, which is ironic when you think about the fact he moved Away from all that. 

but as much as he loved the dogs, it was willow that he couldn’t stand. freedom from his parents sounded like something he could do with, even if it was only for a few years until college was finished. some extended family lived in new york - he’d visited a lot throughout his childhood and adolescence and became enamored with the city. it was only when a compromise was reached between him and his parents in which he could move there after graduation, given that he attended a community college there, that his dreams of moving there would be ultimately fulfilled. while in new york, he moved into a shared house with a cousin of his and some others desperate for housemates ( it wasn’t as if the city was short of them ). he attended college, as promised, picking the degree that made the most sense at the time which was business. looking back, it made little sense - but looking back, college altogether made little sense. he’d never responded too well to academic restraints. 

when studying at college, he was introduced into the world of cab driving. originally, it was more of a necessary evil in order to continue his payments for college. but after a few months - once he saw the money he could accrue from the same hours he was doing at a local hardware store as a cashier  - college became the secondary thing. with any increase in rides came an increase in money and truly, at that time, there was no better city than new york with its population just shy of 8 million - at least in comparison to willow. he eventually quit college and took cab driving full time.

somewhere along the way was an unhappy marriage, the result of a somewhat happy relationship. they were both young ( in their early twenties ) and it made sense at the time ( he really do be doing a lot of things bc they ‘make sense’ dfhkd ) ; he has a large array of family members and almost all of them are married and the same went for his wife. as with a lot of marriages, this one came with a pregnancy and quite soon, too. by the age of 24, erick was married and now a father. fast forward five years and a whole lot of same for erick, he found himself finalising a divorce. it wasn’t the messiest of divorces, but with there being a child involved, things were destined to be complex. neither parent was willing to take any less than full custody, which is why their only option was to settle for joint-custody. the two week by two week schedule worked for a few years, each parent living local to one another and having family to facilitate the handoffs. it worked until erick’s ex-wife moved back to her hometown near quebec city, canada. suddenly a journey between homes that took an hour max was going to push closer to ten. it wasn’t feasible. and so, for the sake of his kid, he moved back to willow, inching the eventual journey down to just a few hours, manageable enough for the both of them - but more imprtantly, fair for their daughter, violet. 

BASICALLY, he’s now 33 and has been living in willow again for the past four years. he moved back in with his parents and as much as he could, relied on his work with uber and local cab firms to help with the rent. his mother works in care and has done since erick was young. there was a volunteer opportunity in the local drugs and alcohol centre that she saw advertised and knowing that her son needed all the transferable skills he could get, she suggested it to him. after volunteering there for a year, when a job opportunity came up, erick took it and ran with it. he wanted something more than driving and tbh, the talking therapy he was providing to addicts was not too dissimilar to what he’d spent the past ten years doing as a cab driver. he genuinely adores his job for what it gives those he can help and for what it gives him. when he’s not at work, he’s with his daughter and that’s something he’s more than okay with. responsibility is a comfort to him in ways.

one of his worst traits is that he can be SO lazy. he’s a good cook ( his mom made Sure of that ), but instead of cooking his daughter a gorgeous meal, he’d much rather stick on some chicken nuggets and smiley faces bc it’s Easy and he’s tired. 

 i imagine he’s kept in touch with those who remained in willow ( especially in the past few years ) - and to those that flew willow’s nest, he’s used social media to keep it touch, even if that ‘touch’ only extended to a few likes on facebook profile pictures. 

wanted plots?

the person in the dogs erick kept in touch with the most ( mainly over facebook ) during his time in nyc. 

someone in the rats whom erick developed a friendship with post-high school ( again, likely started on facebook ).

an old flame 👀

someone who stayed in or has lived in willow for the past few years and has become a close friend of erick ; they help out a lot with violet when his parents can’t.

someone erick had eyes on during high school ... but they happened to be dating someone else at the time ( or he just never made a move )