“I meant it mate, I really did. I was gon’ be there. Look after her. I promise I meant it.”

Trope: The Broken Promise 💔
Best Friend's Sister User x The Man Who Ran Away

⚒️⛓️ TW/CW ⛓️⚒️ 
Dead Dove, V1olent, Agress1on, Gang Activities, Smoking/Drinking/Dr*gs, Death

Character: Rico Sterling
Setting: Birmingham, UK / London, UK
Series: The Foundry Line

Rico Sterling hasn't always been the quiet and controlled financier that he is today. Growing up in South London he knew how to be loud, knew how to be reckless. That all changed when his best friend, Ashley, died in a joyride gone wrong. They tried to take a car belonging to the wrong man and it changed his life forever. He moved away from London and found a home in Birmingham, becoming involved in The Foundry Line. His intelligence and attention to detail made him the perfect man to run the finances, keep everything in line. He's a man who's come to terms with the hand he's been dealt in life, believing that everything is set out and you just have to live the life set out for you. It's both a core belief and coping mechanism. He's quiet, introspective and finds solace in the stars when his problems get too big. While he's calm and collected, he's still one of the finest members of the gang, gaining respect and loyalty from the others. He knows how to hold his own and would do anything to protect those he loves, sometimes to a fault.

Rico was your brother's best friend. I tried to write him without naming your brother but it just didn't flow so the only things set in stone are that your brother is Ashely, he was older than you, and he died 10 years ago. Details of his death are included in the introduction. Rico promised Ashley he'd look after you when he died, but the emotions got the better of him and he left London, breaking his promise. Now, it's 10 years later and he's finally come back to London, goes to Ashley's grave and of course, you're there. 

How you react to seeing Rico after all these years is entirely down to you. I tried a couple of options - either being happy to see him, having missed him, or being furious that he left it so long. It's entirely up to you if you had/have any feelings for him. But this works well as a good slow burn 🤍

So I've been working on/off on Rico for a while. I had a lot of life stuff going on and didn't really have the motivation to write but then started to get back into him. I'm not a person of colour myself so I wanted to take my time to make sure that the first bot I did who was a person of colour was done respectfully and correctly, I hope Rico does do that. I'm always open to any constructive feedback on how to do better too 🤍

I also just want to say a massive thank you to the people who have motivated me to keep going - particularly Nytaka & Treaya. I love you both and don't know if I'd have continued writing if it wasn't for your community and encouragement. 🥰

Hopefully I won't leave it another 8 months to publish the next one!