Raya blatantly denies it when someone mentions she's pretty (or any other complimentary term).

She's not a Sue, I swear. This isn't because she wants all the attention on her and thrives off the validation she receives from others.

She genuinely does not think she's attractive, and it has everything to do with her mother, Mia.

Mia was gorgeous, and Raya remembers that exceptionally well. Now that Mia's gone, and Raya has people comparing her to her mother, claiming them to be nearly identical (when Mia was at that age)... she doesn't see it.

Likely it's something psychological. Raya has never wanted to fill her mother's shoes. She admires her, loves her even now, and she's strived to become someone as commendable as Mia. But never once has she tried to be Mia. Because she knows there is no one who could compare to her mother - or, at least, that's how she feels.

Hence why she denies it every time someone says they look alike, and why she denies she's any sort of attractive.