The older brother of Rusty-James, Motorcycle Boy is

"...born in the wrong era, on the wrong side of the river, with the ability to do anything and finding nothing he wants to do."

He seems older than he actually is and is quite intelligent; his perfect scholastic test scores in school are always questioned, and authorities assume that Motorcycle Boy must be cheating. His terrible home life contributes to his desire to be on his own: His mother eventually abandons the family, and his father often disappears on drunken benders. He has no real home or even a room of his own; he shares a cot and mattress with his father and brother, and they sleep on whichever is available. Motorcycle Boy's real name is never revealed, giving him a more mysterious and aloof persona. He grows tired of his violent gang life, and leaves town in order to cleanse himself. His love of motorcycles leads him to steal them and spend his life on the road whenever possible. The injuries he has received have left him color-blind and partially deaf, further restricting his social interaction in conversation and to visually see the real world in its proper perspective. Motorcycle Boy believes he cannot absolutely be free unless he is on his own, free from the hero-worship of Rusty-James and the bad memories of his earlier years in his home town.

Motorcycle Boy compares himself to Robin Hood, Jesse Hames, and the Pied Piper.

Motorcycle Boy finds out that the picture a photographer took of him was published in a magazine. Rusty-James says he can't wait to tell people. When he's responding to Rusty-James, Motorcycle Boy says he doesn't want him to tell people. He says:

"It's a bit of a burden to be Robin Hood, Jesse James, and the Pied Piper. I'd just as soon stay a neighborhood novelty, if it's all the same to you. It's not that I couldn't handle a larger scale. I just plain don't want to."

Rusty-James agrees with his brother about how people see him. Each person views the boy differently depending on their own background and biases. For some people, he's a hero. For others, an outlaw. For others, a charismatic leader. Rusty-James even says that the guys would have followed his brother anywhere.

These different personas show the varied sides of Motorcycle Boy. Though he's a criminal, he's intelligent and has his own set of strict morals. This intelligence translates into him being very persuasive and well-spoken, which encourages others to listen to him and do as he says.

I don't think he's a hero at all.  His life seems completely pointless.  He never accomplishes anything and he never really does anything positive.  I think that's why he never gets a name.  He's not a real person because he doesn't seem to care about anything.  I have a really negative image of him and do not see him as a hero at all.

It's not too surprising that Motorcycle Boy doesn't drink—or do drugs, for that matter—being as how his old man's such a degenerate alcoholic. But more than that, he's a natural leader, a charismatic guy who just oozes rebellious cool. And as a leader, Motorcycle Boy wants to stay in control. That's why he doesn't drink alcohol. He only has to look at his father to see the damage that booze can do, how it means that you're no longer in control of your own life, let alone anyone else's. Motorcycle Boy takes after his mother in that he sees the world differently from most people. As well as being a non-conformist in adult society, he also rebels against the conventions of teenage sub-culture, which revolves around the excessive consumption of alcohol.