Love Her, Not Me

Chapter 2: "The Shadows and The Light"

Note:
"I might have notes in every chapter.. I think? But thank you for reading my story..
I do NOT want hate, I just wanna make stories for fun, Fun fact about me, I forget things quick, so i don't remember if I added swearing or whatever... Apologies."

Warning:
Swearing???
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Chapter 2: "The Shadows and The Light"

Ray hadn't seen much of Skyler at school. Though they were brothers, their schedules were completely different, and in many ways, it felt like they were worlds apart. Skyler was a senior-a confident, popular one at that-while Ray was a first-year who still got lost in the hallways and nervously fumbled with his locker combination.

At home, Skyler was kind and warm. He teased Ray a little, like any older brother, but he'd always look out for him. But at school, it was like they lived in two separate universes. Skyler's friends were part of the cool crowd; he was the kind of guy everyone recognized. Tall and athletic, with easy charm. Ray, meanwhile, was smaller, gangly, kinda has pimples, like any highschooler would, and often gets bullied due to him wearing glasses.

The differences between them weren't lost on the other students. No one at school knew they were brothers, and Ray was determined to keep it that way. Skyler was popular, respected, and, more than anything, untouchable. Ray? He was the shy kid, the "weird one," and the frequent target of whispers and cruel remarks.

One day, during lunch, Ray and Matthew were sitting at their usual spot under the trees near the edge of the field. Matthew was digging into his lunch, telling Ray about some joke he'd heard in class, when Ray's attention drifted toward a crowd nearby. A group of seniors had gathered, laughing loudly and talking in their typical, careless way. And at the center of it all, there was Skyler, laughing along with them.

"Ray, you okay?" Matthew asked, noticing his friend's far-off gaze.

Ray snapped back to attention, tearing his eyes away from his brother. "Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine." He gave a small, embarrassed smile and shoved a forkful of pasta into his mouth.

Matthew glanced over at the group of seniors. "Are you staring at Skyler's group?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. He was aware of Ray's fascination with them-most people couldn't ignore them even if they tried.

Ray shook his head quickly, trying to brush it off. "Nah, it's just... well, they always seem like they're having so much fun, you know? It's weird to imagine that... I don't know, that someone like him could ever have real problems."

Matthew chuckled. "I don't think people like Skyler ever do. They're on top of the world, right?"

Ray nodded, not daring to correct him. He wanted to say something about Skyler's struggles, the pressure he faced at home to get into a good high school, how their mom had endless expectations for him. But no one needed to know all that, least of all Matthew. So he swallowed the words and looked down at his lunch, feeling strangely out of place.

---

One afternoon, Ray found himself caught up in a group project with some classmates from his math class. They were supposed to be researching together in the library, but two of the other boys were goofing off, occasionally shooting pointed glances at Ray, snickering about his glasses or the way his shirt was a bit too big.

"Hey, Ray," one of them sneered. "So, did you forget your way to the nerd club today, or are you planning to start one?"

Ray clenched his fists, feeling the familiar sting of embarrassment. He tried to ignore them, focusing instead on his notebook. But just as he was starting to tune them out, one of the guys sneered, "Maybe we should call Skyler over. Bet he'd think it's hilarious."