WILD ON THE INSIDE

CHAPTER TWELVE

The next day was Wednesday, and Megan had the odds stacked in her favor. That morning, their biology teacher was fuming—close to bursting, really. Lately, the class had failed miserably in their biology tests, and the tough teacher was livid. That morning, he decided to divide the class into discussion groups of two, to force them to help each other out. He read out the pairs one by one: Tasha with Kendall, Craig with Kevin, Tani and Lorenzo, Gabriel with Gabriela, Nikki with Megan, Charlie with Hardin, Dylan alone… and he continued until the end.

Dylan was left hanging, wondering why he’d been left out with no partner. But then again, why should he care? Everyone in that class hated him anyway.

“What the f**k?!” Megan exclaimed under her breath, shocked by the groupings. Nikki just smiled, a look of total amusement lighting up her face. Hardin looked nauseated, and so did Charlie.

“This is so annoying,” Charlie muttered. “Does this teacher think I’m gay? Pairing me with a guy… and not just any guy, but my best friend’s one love?” He was clearly agitated.

“Please keep quiet,” Megan said sharply, wanting to shut down the brewing argument. But Charlie was seething.

“Shut up!” he snapped at her.

“Charlie, calm down,” Megan urged, but it was too late. He stormed out of the class. It was so unlike him to get mad at such small issues, and Megan could sense something deeper was going on. She decided to follow him.

Charlie had retreated upstairs to the library, which was almost always deserted in the morning. Though meant for the upper grades—the seniors of the school—it was mostly used in the afternoons by couples who’d rather get lost in each other than in their books. But now, it was empty, save for Charlie.

Megan found him in a far corner, whimpering softly like a child. She approached cautiously.

“Charlie, what’s the matter?” she asked gently, laying a hand on his shoulder.

He didn’t look up. “The problem is with me, Megs. It’s me. I don’t know how to face you after this… I don’t know if you’ll ever understand. But I can’t be in the same group with Hardin. I just can’t.”

“Why?” she pressed, her voice low but urgent.

“You can’t understand, can you? For all the years we’ve been friends, you still don’t get it? Megan, I didn’t choose to be like this—it just happened.” He hesitated, then blurted out, “Megan… I’m gay. And the worst part is… I have a crush on the guy you like. And that’s not even all of it.”

“Charlie—” she tried to interrupt, but he pressed on.

“You need to know. We… slept together. Your man… Hardin… he’s gay.”

At that, Megan’s hand flew to his cheek, slapping him so hard that a cut formed at the corner of his lower lip. Her eyes were fierce.

“Yes, I knew you were gay—I’ve known people like you before. And yes, I knew you had a crush on Hardin; it’s always been there in your eyes. But accusing him of being gay? That’s low, Charlie. Do you want me to never date him, or do you just want to ruin what we have? Go ahead—join him. If you’ve been making love, keep at it. Because you know what? I’m done with this school,” she spat out, storming away.

At break time, Megan sat in the cafeteria alone, the walls of the room seeming to close in on her. She couldn’t believe Charlie’s story, yet she couldn’t see why he’d lie to her either. She was so lost in her thoughts that she barely noticed Dylan sitting down beside her, peering into her eyes.

“It was a hassle getting you,” he said teasingly. “Why the long face? Did you lose a grandchild or something?” Dylan asked.

“And why were you looking for me?”

“I wanted to tell you that I’m close to winning the bet,” he said wearily.

“You better get used to seeing my face,” he smirked. “Soon enough, you and I will be best of friends.”

“Wait—Dylan, I need to ask you something. And I want you to be one hundred percent honest with me.”

He leaned back, amused. “What is it?”

“Is Hardin gay?”

Dylan looked at her like she’d grown a second head. “I thought you’d ask something sensible. Look, we might not like each other, but I don’t like Hardin either—definitely not like that. The way he loves girls? It’s clear—he’s not gay. That’s out of the question.”

“Okay… I have to go,” she said numbly, rising from the table.

“You’re fooling yourself if you think you’re alone,” he teased. “I have lots of friends. You? Not so much. But maybe… just maybe, you’ll be the exception,” he winked. “Bye.”

She felt like her head was going to explode. What if Charlie was telling the truth? She had to get to the bottom of it.

As she left the cafeteria, she spotted Hardin walking with Tyler, hand in hand, laughing and giggling like a couple in love. Megan’s heart crumbled. She watched as Hardin turned to Tyler, holding both of his hands, saying something that made Tyler laugh again. Then Hardin hugged him—an intimate, tender embrace—before they parted ways.

Megan was shattered. She wanted to cry, but her pride wouldn’t let a single tear fall. She kept glaring at Hardin as he approached her, her eyes blazing with rage.

“Oh, hey there, Megan,” Hardin greeted her with a smile.

Without saying a word, she turned sharply, her hair whipping him in the face as she walked away. Confused and a little hurt, he was forced to follow her. She marched straight to the school’s flower garden, where she found a quiet spot to sit, her back rigid with anger.

“Why are you acting so strange towards me?” Hardin asked, finally catching up to her. “I thought you were still set on winning that bet.”

“Hey,” she said, staring him dead in the eyes. “I want you to look me in the face and answer the question I’m about to ask. If you have the nerve to lie, I swear I’ll walk out of this school and never look back.”

He looked at her curiously. “Go on.”

“Are you gay or not?” she demanded.

Hardin’s eyes widened in shock, then he burst into laughter. “Megan, really? That’s your question?”

“It’s not a joke,” she snapped. “Don’t lie to me, Hardin. Tell me the truth.”

He sobered up, a flicker of pain in his eyes. “What do you expect me to say? Of course I’m not gay. I could never love a guy—it’s disgusting. Don’t you agree?”

“How could I agree with you?” she shot back. “Charlie told me that you two… you know, that you’ve been together.”

“I’m going to bust that imbecile’s face!” Hardin snarled, turning to leave, but she grabbed his arm.

“Don’t,” she said, her voice trembling. “What about you and Tyler? Holding hands like lovers, hugging—what was that about? Are you a man or not?”

He let out a frustrated sigh. “I’m a man. Hugging is just our thing—he’s going away for a week, that’s all. Come on, Megan. You wouldn’t really believe Charlie over me, would you?”

She looked at him, doubt and hurt swirling in her eyes. “I don’t know if I should or shouldn’t believe you. Give me a reason to.”

Hardin took a deep breath, then stepped closer, pulling her into his arms. He kissed her softly at first, then with growing passion. Though confused, Megan didn’t pull away—she let herself feel the kiss, her heart pounding.

Hardin broke the kiss, searching her face. “Is that reason enough?” he whispered.

She took a shaky breath. “Please… don’t go beyond this,” she pleaded.

He smiled faintly, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek. “Okay, Megan,” he murmured, “but remember—sometimes love doesn’t need words. Sometimes, it just… is.”

“Is that reason enough for you to believe me? I’m not gay. I love women—especially you,” Hardin emphasized.

“Trying to make me win the bet, or what?” Megan said, arching an eyebrow.

“Oh, silly you,” he chuckled softly. “Come here,” he said, pulling her into a warm embrace. Megan didn’t resist; she felt the comfort and safety of his arms around her. While in that embrace, she cleverly slipped his phone from his back pocket. Hardin didn’t even notice.

“All right,” she said after a moment, stepping back. “I have to go and copy some notes. I need to take the final step to win the bet. I can turn all the tables around.” She paused and gave him a long, searching look. “Do you still stand by your argument that you can’t break up with Nikki for any reason?”

“I do,” he admitted. “But let’s see what plan you’ve got. If it works, I’ll give it all up for you.”

“Okay,” she said, pocketing his phone. “What a maverick girl you are,” he said as she walked away.

With Hardin’s phone in hand, she sent a message to Nikki, unaware that Nikki was sitting with Hardin at that very moment.

“Read this,” Nikki said, passing the phone to Hardin. “It’s from you, apparently.”

Nikki read the message aloud, confusion etched on her face. “Hey Nikki, I know this might sound emotionless and messy, but I’m not the right person for you. You deserve someone better. I’m sorry