Allison Hadley

Allison Hadley is one of the key characters in Layne Fargo’s psychological thriller They Never Learn.

At first, Allison represents a bold freshman student who is excited about her new university life because it lets her get away from her controlling parents. Allison is a fun, easy-going extrovert, and she is also openly bi. She jokes about it, saying to her roommate Carly that “all the cutest girls are bi”, but her bisexuality is also a traumatic experience for her.

When she was younger, there were only two people in her hometown who knew that she was bi — her best friend, Wes, and her boyfriend Justin. When Allison came out to Justin, he didn’t just break up with her right before prom, but also outed her to everyone in town. Because of it, Allison was bullied and kicked out of her home by her biphobic parents — a situation made even more grim because her father is a Methodist pastor. Wes let Allison live with him, and they came to university together.

They soon became friends with Allison’s roommate Carly, who was also bi. Allison and Carly eventually became more than friends and they shared a kiss.

After Allison was attacked at a Halloween party by the boy she was dating, Carly tried to convince her to file a complaint. When the university authorities didn’t react, Allison just wanted to behave as if nothing had happened. Because of her devastating experiences with biphobia at home, Allison just wants to be normal. She doesn’t have the energy to fight the system. 

As bi representation, Allison is a very complex and realistic bi character. Layne Fargo avoids the stereotypical “confused” or “promiscuous” bi teenager and instead presents bisexuality as an important part of Allison’s identity — one that shapes her experiences, fears, and choices. Her story captures the painful realities of everyday biphobia, both external and internalized: she faces rejection from her family, betrayal from peers, and ultimately turns her anger to herself, trying to suppress the parts of herself that can make her vulnerable. 

Allison’s bisexuality is not used for plot drama or sexual tension; it is central to her emotional journey. Her trauma around being outed and punished for her identity explains her later desire for safety and “normalcy”, even at the cost of authenticity. In contrast to Carly’s defiant idealism, Allison represents many bi girls who have been too deeply hurt by everyday biphobia and sexism to keep fighting.