Ray woke up with the sun's. His hair wasn't long, but it was full of dirt and tiny sticks. He combed them out, got up, and shook the dust off his clothes. He regretted throwing that shoe... which incidentally, was sitting not far away. He picked it up, and the heel was chewed to bits. He paused for a long time, staring at it. Then he slipped on the shoe, and started walking.

When Ray got back to school, Theresa was already in Mr. Carisol's office. She was angry, and grilled the principal on how he could let a stranger show up and completely ruin the life of her little brother. Ray heard this, and was ecstatic! Finally, the hero had arrived. Then, to his horror, she saw Theresa sitting next to the wolf boy.
Theresa kept talking. "How could you let some random girl come in and take my little brother's stuff?! He's only got one hoodie and one pair of pants! Smell him, he reeks!" Theresa, with her long dark hair and gold eyes, sat with her arms crossed over her crossed legs. As usual, she was dressed in a thin school jacket, with jeans and a dress shirt. Why she still wore a student's jacket was anyone's guess, but being that she was only twenty-one years old, it could have been that she just hadn't yet grown into being a coach. If not for a massive staff shortage, she might never have gotten the job – she hadn't even spent any time yet as a student teacher.
Mr. Carisol sniffed, and was immediately disgusted. He cleared his throat. "Yes, well, she claimed to be a relative. A twin sister, in fact. And Ray was more than happy to let her have his belongings."
"That's cause he's a big softie. Aren't ya, kiddo?" Theresa tussled her hand in his messy white hair.
"Lovin' the new look, by the way."
Fake Ray's leg twitched happily.
Ray hung outside the door, and slumped down against the wall. She never tussled his hair like that. At least, not since he was five. If his own big sister couldn't tell a fake, nobody could. All because he hid away, and ate snacks in the woods by himself. Nobody knew enough about who Ray was to know whether or not his faker was real. Sure, everyone annoyed her, and made her feel insecure, but it was better than being alone.
That's when something unexpected happened: Ray felt a hand on her head. It was Sebastian. With his squarish jaw, strong shoulders, lanky body, and raven black hair, and his sensitive black eyes that seemed to hold within them the entire night sky, all at once. Not that, uh. Ray ever looked for that sort of thing. In other people. Y'know, it was just something he'd noticed a few times.
"Feel the light, my child, and bear your soul before Him, the Lord, and you will be-"
"Just fine without all that, thanks," she grimaced.
"Okay, no religious stuff. Why the long face?" he asked.
"Oh, like you care," he cried. "I bet you don't even know who I am."
"You're Ray, the loner from my math class," Sebastian replied. "And gym, too."
His eyes lit up – he hopped up and hugged the guy. "How did you know?"
Sebastian shrugged. "What, are you kidding? I'd know that sulk anywhere. You're always wearing it in gym class, too. That's the only time you ever take off your hoodie. Which is gross, by the way."
Ray lets go, disgusted with himself for his... hugginess. It's a little too much emotion, for him.
Seb continues, "...and, I'll never forget the look in your eyes, when you get pissed off: fierce, and righteous. It makes me jealous to no end. This fake... not only does he smell even worse than you, but his eyes are empty. He sates himself, sure, but he does not struggle to live."
"Well, that fake is puppy-dogging his way into everyone's hearts... including the girl I like."
"That sounds like a passionate, and confusing love triangle... well, now I'm intrigued. Perhaps some healthy competition would strengthen your love". Sebastian mused, with a wry smile.
"He gave her tongue," Ray jabbed.
"Oh," Seb followed. "That's... wow. I'm sorry, dude."

The two left the school, to get some air. Outside, on the front sidewalk, they sat and formulated their plan. Ray hummed thoughtfully. "There's only one thing that'll prove my identity."
"A blood test!" Sebastian tried.
"My birth certificate." Ray answered. "It's a digital card, with a fingerprint sensor. It'll invalidate him in an instant."
"Ah, yeah. That too, heh."
Just then, the two of them spied Theresa and the wolf boy, trotting to her truck. By the sounds of their conversation, they were going for ice cream, and then to her place for dinner. Real Ray hadn't eaten a full meal in an entire day. He narrowed his eyes, seeing the mission unfold before him. His objective was clear. Ray gestured to Sebastian, and Sebastian walked up to the truck. He tapped on the window, and Theresa rolled it down.
He grinned. "Pardon me, madam, I heard you were going for ice cream? Mind if I... tag along?" Then, he charmingly raised an eyebrow.
Theresa grunted, "Creep." and rolled up the window. She drove off, and Sebastian gave the truck a thumbs up. Theresa stepped on the gas, and Ray slid around in the truck's box, under a polyester blanket. It was a trick that he'd used in the past, to tag along to the gas station and get chips. But he'd stopped after last time, when she ended up parking in front of a motel for four hours straight. He ended up using his snack money to take a cab home, and waited for her to return. She must have been really tired, and needed a nap away from home. It was part of why Ray always tried to be quiet around her, so she could rest. Maybe that was why she liked Fake Ray so much... he was happy around her. Real Ray thought he was giving his sister space, but maybe all he'd ended up doing was shrinking away. Real Ray peeked out of the blanket at Seb, who gave him a thumbs-up. Though Ray had to go the rest of the way alone, he appreciated Seb's help, a lot.

After sitting through the drive-thru in hiding, and watching 'ice cream' turn gradually into 'everything on the menu', they finally arrived at Theresa's place... Ray remained undetected. Burger wrappers and soda cups fell out as the two gluttons opened their doors. Theresa finished a laugh, apparently having just heard a really funny joke. "I don't know what made you stop acting like such a wallflower, but it's nice to be able to hang out with you again. You were all stuck-up, and scared of every little thing, and look at you now! You've got the biggest grin I've seen on you in years!"
Completely aboard another train of thought, Fake Ray lifted up his hoodie. "I have abs now!" he exclaimed, with a smile as wide as a kid on his birthday.
Theresa whistled. "Nice. Put your shirt down, now, this is a family establishment," she joked, mimicking a fancy accent.
Ray felt the flab under his belly, and wondered what the fuck his diet was for if someone could just say 'to hell with it' and look like cut marble. Maybe it was from living without food, and still needing the strength to survive.
'(Don't go snacking those abs away, asshole)', Ray growled under his breath.
Ray's comfort could have been his undoing, and it made him take his life for granted. Here was a boy who'd obviously been born with nothing, who saw what Ray had as a never-ending adventure... or a fucking amusement park. Ray was upset, but he was done crying. Done being disappointed. He'd finally learned what everyone in his life really thought of him: that he was a boring stick-in-the-mud, and a grump. That as soon as it looked like he'd become 'more fun', they were suddenly willing to revise years of their personal history, to make it match the new moment. Darnell and Yembe pretended they'd always been friends, and Loretta pretended she'd ever so much as spared a thought for the useless nobody, Raimundo Radigan. Neither of them seemed to notice or care that a child had died on school grounds, too enamored with their new puppy to spare a single tear. The school hadn't even called for an announcement, when Ray had left. Now that everyone had their little performer, they were finally happy, finally ready to accept 'Ray' into their lives. Ray's fake was even more dark and dire than he was! The only difference was that he did it with a smile. Well, if Real Ray was nothing but an inconvenience, then he might as well do them all a favor and just run away. And go be someone else, entirely. From now on, there would be only one Raimundo. The fake had won. The nobody waited for Ray and Theresa to climb the stairs and go inside. Then, the nobody pulled himself out of the truck's box, and started walking away. Suddenly, Ray opened the door again, and shouted to him.
"Well? Don't be shy! Come on in!"
The nobody was confused, and without being able to stop, started crying. "Why are you doing this to me?!"
Ray climbed down, and offered his hand. "To thank you, for everything. I noticed you fifteen minutes ago, glaring at me while I ate. That's why I saved you my fries, for when we got here."
The nobody paused. "...you saved me fries?"
"Come on." Ray took the nobody upstairs, and inside.