The Obstruction of Emma Goldsworthy Read online

Will executed a perfect spit-take, causing Micah to wipe orange juice off his arm.

  “Pikachu?” he cried, while Micah glared at Emma. “Seriously? That little… I don’t know, was it a rat thing, from Pokemon?”

  “That’s the one.” Emma managed to take a sip of coffee and keep it down, unlike her table companion.

  “It’s a mouse,” Micah said, as if that was the most important part of the conversation.

  “Does he dress up as Pikachu?” Will asked.

  Emma made her eyes bulge. “Is he a furry?”

  Micah folded his arms and stared off into space.

  “Oh, we’ve upset him,” Will said to Emma.

  “Sorry, Micah,” Emma said with her best baby voice.

  Micah sighed. “I really have matured. I think I’m the most mature at this table.”

  “Word of advice, champ.” Emma picked up her fork, ready to attack her pancakes again. “If you have to keep telling everybody how mature you are, you’re probably not.”

  “Hey, let’s talk about your love life for a change!”

  “Nothing to talk about.” That was the truth, unfortunately.

  “Come on, Will,” Micah implored. “Back me up here.”

  “Does he make you call him Pikachu in bed?” Will asked.

  Emma’s tone deepened as she began moaning, “Pika… Pika… Pika… chuuuuuuu.” She ignored the funny looks she was getting from the other customers in the café.

  “I’m never going to be able to watch Pokemon again.” Will was obviously scarred for life.

  “Emma’s in love with a girl she’s never seen the face of,” Micah blurted.

  Now it was her turn to cringe. “Micah!”

  Will seemed nonplussed. “We live in the age of the internet. That doesn’t seem so strange.”

  “Oh, it gets weirder,” Micah said before she could stop him.

  “Well, go on, don’t leave us hanging.”

  “She’s in love with Malcolm Reynolds.”

  Will’s face screwed up. “Okay, you lost me. So Micah’s a furry, and Emma’s got the hots for a guy?”

  Both Micah and Emma were now protesting, over the top of each other, about the identities foisted upon them.

  “It was a Halloween party!” Emma cried.

  “Okay. So you didn’t know it was a guy?” Will asked.

  “I knew it wasn’t a guy. It was one of those gender switcheroo things.”

  Switcheroo, Micah mouthed at Will, and they both laughed.

  “You know what I mean. Gender-bending.”

  “Mind you,” Micah continued, as if Emma had never spoken, “Malcolm never saw Emma’s face either.”

  “Now I’m really confused.”

  “Emma had a mask on. She was Batgirl.”

  “Okay, so I’ve got this right now? You’re still a furry, and Emma’s now a cartoon.”

  “Close.”

  “I’m right here, you know,” she reminded them.

  “So it’s like lovers meeting at a masked ball,” Will mused.

  “Yeah, like Romeo and Juliet meeting at the Capulet’s party.”

  “Let’s hope it doesn’t end in double suicide.”

  “Thank you both.” Emma put her fork down, appetite lost.

  “It’s a good story, though,” Will said. “But I think you two obviously need to meet new people.”

  Between the three of them they had changed alliances more often than the antagonists in a spy movie.

  “What are you going to do about her?” Micah asked Emma.

  “Nothing. What can I do? She doesn’t know who I am, and vice versa.”

  “Well, someone at the party has to know who she is.”

  “I didn’t know very many people there to ask,” she admitted.

  “Start with the people you know, then.”

  “They don’t know who she is either. Anyway, the moment’s long gone.”

  “So there was a moment?” Will asked.

  Micah nodded, doing Emma’s actions for her this time if not her speech.

  “New topic, please.” Emma made it clear she didn’t want to talk about gender-bent Malcolm Reynolds any longer.

  “Batgirl and Pikachu,” Will mused to himself. “Now there’s a crossover waiting to happen.”

  Micah and Emma couldn’t help but laugh, and it only reminded Emma of how much she would miss the both of them when she got back home.

  FROM THE ReachOut, March 16, 2016

  Out and About with Jasper Brunswick

  Someone close to my inner circle claims that my columns are always “sausage-fests,” meaning I only ever talk about men. Although I usually ignore anything this particular person says, this time I feel they may be a tiny bit right—not that I will ever say it to their face. And if they bring up this column I will deny it ever said this, and if it did, it was a gross instance of journalistic tampering by the editor. (Just to clarify, JB is the editor now—Ed.)

  You may not know Emma Goldsworthy yet, but you soon will. Not only is she an excellent hockey player on her second-year scholarship at the Australian Institute of Sport, she is also one of the subjects of the new documentary Get Out While You’re Young by Simon Murray, partner of AFL legend (and first out AFL player) Declan Tyler. The doco focuses on the first wave of kids who came through Tyler’s charity GetOut, helping LGBTQ kids make it through their chosen sport. I have already featured Micah Johnson as he navigated his first year with the Fremantle Dockers, proving himself to be an integral part of his team.

  Now it’s Emma’s turn.

  J: Welcome, Emma, and thank you for the opportunity to speak to you.

  E: So formal, Jasper!

  J: I guess I have to point out that we do know each other somewhat—

  E: Jasper, no! People will talk.

  J: Very funny. You’ve been hanging around a certain someone we know far too often.

  E: I’d like to point out I was a fully rounded girl with a mind of my own when I met Simon Murray. All I did was find a kindred spirit.

  J: And a pain in the—anyway.

  E: I’m surprised you’re interviewing me.

  J: Why’s that?

  E: Am I the first woman you’ve ever interviewed? When you look at me, do you just see a talking vagina? Well, not that, but just a pair of loose, flapping labia?

  J: That’s a wonderful image, Emma. And no, you’re not the first woman I’ve ever interviewed.

  E: Just checking.

  (Jasper Brunswick wishes to clarify he has interviewed many female subjects over his time at the ReachOut. In regard to the “sausage-fest” comment above, JB would like to clarify that it is true he has dealt with far more male subjects, and this is something he would like to rectify—Ed.)

  J: Let’s get back to the subject of the doco. Are you not worried about putting your life up on screen for everyone to see?

  E: I trust Simon and Dec. I know they won’t exploit our stories.

  J: So, what’s your story?

  E: I don’t know if mine is as dramatic or inspiring as others. Wait, that sounded flippant. I didn’t mean it like that. You have Will on one hand, who experienced a major road accident. And then you have Micah, who makes it in spectacular fashion. I mean, you know that.

  J: Yes, I’m aware.

  (Regular readers may remember that Jasper caused a kerfuffle with a less-than-sensitive comparison to the two boys’ stories in a column from last year—Ed.)

  E: So my story isn’t anything like that.

  J: But it is one of heartbreak.

  E: I wouldn’t say heartbreak… that’s too strong a word.

  J: But you did lose your first love… separated by the tyranny of distance when it came to your careers, much like Micah and his first boyfriend, Kyle.

  E: Um, I would say it was very different.

  J: How so?

  E: Yeah, I think this is when my agent should step in to tell you this question is out of bounds.

  J: You don’t have an agent.

>   E: Then I’ll be my own agent. Next question.

  J: Then it really was heartbreak?

  E: No, it bloody well wasn’t heartbreak. We had broken up before I even left for Canberra. It was a long time ago, okay? And I’m not heartbroken, I’m well past it, and I’m just sick of being asked stupid questions.

  J: Okay.

  E: Do you have any better questions to ask?

  J: You’re good friends with Micah Johnson—

  E: Oh, good grief. (Actual comment toned down for publication—Ed.)

  J: Is your agent stepping in again?

  E: I just thought this was an interview with me, about my life, and not about Micah Johnson’s.

  J: Isn’t he part of your life?

  E: Doesn’t he get enough press from you without intruding on my own?

  J: I didn’t think that would be such a problem.

  E: Of course you wouldn’t. I suppose this is the part of the interview where the lesbian is going to look like a man-hating bitch?

  J: Depends what you say.

  E: Okay. Shall I remind you that Micah Johnson is in a sport that is worshipped nationally, by both men and women, and where women are represented roughly equal in the memberships of the clubs? That the teams and the players earn millions while women’s sports struggle to get funding? That the men’s national hockey team gets far more money and funding than the women’s, even though the women’s team are the world champions and the men are struggling to even reach finals? Is that what I should or shouldn’t say?

  J: Well—

  E: Tell you what, you do your part for equality. Next time you do an interview about Micah Johnson, ask him questions about me.

  J: Are all of you kids from GetOut this feisty?

  E: Dec and Simon told us not to take crap from condescending interviewers.

  J: Well, they taught you well.

  E: Damn skippy.

  Emma Goldsworthy is definitely one to watch, and if she’s as strong on the field as she is in real life, then those against her both on and off the field should be shaking in their knee-high socks. If she lets me, I would love to interview her again. And try not to be so condescending. (Good luck!—Ed.)

  TEXTS SENT to Emma Goldsworthy after publication of the interview:

  Simon Murray: Great interview! I saw JB the day after the interview and he still looked pale. Good work! I have taught you well. The padawan is now the master! (Darth Vader emoji.)

  Declan Tyler: You gave as good as you got. I’m very proud of you. I didn’t ever take any shit either, but there were times I wish I had been less diplomatic and let them know they were dickheads. Keep on being you.

  Carl Goldsworthy: U man-hating lesbian! Xxx

  Mardi Sing: I wish you had gone 2 our school and been a part of our GSA. Let’s catch up next time you’re down.

  Will Deanes: You’re the best.

  Jasper Brunswick: I meant what I said in that last line.

  Coby Whitehead: Sometimes Jasper needs to be put in his place. Believe me, I know.

  Jasper Brunswick: By “the last line,” I meant the one about being happy to interview you again. And I promise not to mention Micah.

  Will Deanes: Miss you xxx

  Micah Johnson: Brilliant article. Everything you said was true. And I’ll be happy to say so in my next interview with Voldemort <3

  Number Unknown: Read the interview. U did GR8. Hope to see you soon.

  Part One

  Chapter 1

  EMMA’S TIME in Melbourne was over far too quickly, and before she knew it, she was back home.

  Home?

  Canberra wasn’t home. For her it was merely a base of operations—where she needed to be to embark upon her career as a hockey player if she wanted to succeed. But it was a city of civil servants, not exactly conducive for a twenty-year-old living away from her family and her real home for the first time.

  As she made her way from the plane to the luggage area she could feel her feet turning to lead, not wanting to take her back to her dorm room at the AIS. The only good thing about it was she had a room to herself, although there was a shared common area from where all the rooms branched out like a panopticon prison Emma once had to study in history class. It did, however, mean she could crawl under her doona, shut out the world, and not come out again until her alarm went off Monday morning.

  “Emma!”

  A familiar face appeared among the crowd. Kyle Marks had a duffel bag slung over his broad shoulders. As he reached her she felt dwarfed by his presence. She wasn’t that short, but he towered over her.

  Emma had known he was in Canberra on a baseball scholarship, but this was the first time she had seen him in person. He was Micah’s ex, his first real boyfriend, and their split hadn’t been a happy one, although it was due to distance more than anything else. He and Emma had exchanged a few emails when they both first moved here, under the pretence of continuing a friendship, but she felt torn between wanting a familiar person in a new city and loyalty to Micah. So they had kind of ghosted each other, and Emma regretted it.

  Hugging him was like embracing a wall. A very nice, secure, sweet-smelling wall—but a wall nevertheless. A wall of boy flesh at that, which didn’t do anything for her. “I can’t believe we’ve never run into each other before this!”

  “Yeah, it’s surprising, seeing it’s not the biggest town in the world,” he agreed. “You still need to get your luggage? I’ll come with you.”

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  “I want to. It’s good to see you.”

  Emma felt likewise. She didn’t feel as alone as she had two minutes ago. Seeing someone from your past could really work wonders on your serotonin levels. “Same. You weren’t on the flight from Melbourne, were you?”

  “No, I just got back from Sydney. Away game.”

  She knew his dad was a football coach, so had always thought it was strange he got into baseball—a game that at times felt as foreign to the average Australian as hockey, her own chosen sport. It gave them some kind of common ground.

  “How was Melbourne?” he asked. “I miss home.”

  “It was its usual lovely self. And I hated leaving it.”

  “I’m glad I’m not the only one,” he admitted. “I know we haven’t been away that long, but I can’t imagine any other place feeling like Melbs does.”

  “Too right. And you’re definitely not the only one who’s homesick.”

  “Were you just seeing your family?”

  “I thought Micah might have told you,” Emma said. “It was the launch of the GetOut doc.”

  A momentary pain crossed Kyle’s face, but he recovered. “Uh, no. I didn’t know.”

  He didn’t? That would have been the last thing Emma suspected. “But you and Micah still talk, don’t you?”

  At least that’s what Micah had told her. She knew something big had gone down between them last time they saw each other, but Micah had said things were improving since then.

  “Things are a little bit better,” Kyle admitted. “But… I don’t know. I guess we just have a long way to go before we can be proper friends.”

  “If exes can be friends at all.” It was out before she could stop herself.

  That flash of pain again. “Maybe.”

  “Don’t listen to me,” she said, trying to sound as apologetic as possible. “I don’t know what I’m talking about. Really. It’s a pretty sad state of affairs when Micah Johnson is able to have longer-lasting relationships than me.”

  Kyle gave a small grin. “Are things that bad?”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Come on, a hot chick like you? You’ll be fine.”

  “A hot chick?” Emma swatted him on the shoulder, and he ducked, laughing. “On second thought, maybe I’m a little bit pleased with being called a hot chick.” It had been a long time between compliments. She’d take one from a gay man.

  “Sorry, I mean woman. A refined, elegant, classy woman.”

 
“I think I like ‘hot chick’ better.”

  “You’re not seeing anyone?”

  “No.” The thought hit her again. “No, no, no.” Maybe she sounded a little wistful, so Emma checked herself and lunged for her bag as it came into sight on the conveyor. “My love is hockey. And maybe it’s better that way for the moment.”

  “I hear ya,” Kyle agreed, but he didn’t elaborate, and Emma didn’t push.

  They decided to share a taxi. He had moved with some other baseballers into a house not that far from the Institute. Emma wondered if that could be in her future. Not with baseballers, obviously. She could just imagine the state of the toilets, and unless she had her own en suite, that was never going to happen. But moving in with some of the other hockey girls could be cool. Maybe she needed to get out of the dorms to feel more like she had a home. The AIS housing had all the warmth of a youth hostel, and the same feeling of impermanency.

  The night air was remarkably cool as they left the interior of the airport and stood in the waiting bay for an available taxi.

  “How did Micah seem at the launch?” Kyle asked, trying to sound casual. Emma thought he probably had been attempting to broach the subject for a while but backing away from it just as quickly. She hoped Kyle wasn’t still strung out on Micah; it would only be bad news for his boyfriend, who by all accounts actually sounded pretty nice. Even Micah had reluctantly admitted that.

  “He seemed to be the same old Micah,” she said carefully.

  More to himself, Kyle said, “I guess that’s a good thing.”

  His whole demeanour couldn’t have been more obvious.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing.” His response was too quick.

  “Don’t give me that bullshit.”

  “I’ve just been worried about him.”

  “It’s not really your job as his ex, is it?”

  Kyle glared at her. “I still care about him.”

  “What are you not telling me?” Emma demanded.

  He tried to shrug her off. “Look, it was something from a while back. If you said he’s good, he’s good.”

  “He’s my friend. And now you’ve got me worried.” Fucking Micah Johnson. Was he ever going to stop having people worrying about him? Even now, when Emma had obviously been fooled into thinking he had become more settled over in Perth, he was obviously hiding something. She had her own problems to worry about; it couldn’t always be about him!