Going for Gold

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1

[instrumental music]

[upbeat music]

[crowd cheering, applauding]

[Emma] That's me.

Emma Wilson.

And this is my squad.

I know what you're thinking.

"Wow. Look at them.

They're amazing."

And you'd pretty much be right.

But this isn't the first time

I've been

in a red-hot cheer squad.

Believe it or not,

we used to be a hot mess.

And to understand that,

we have to fly 8000 miles

back to where it all began.

My dad's in the Air Force.

I've spent most of my life

traveling to bases

all over the world.

We've been stationed

in California

for nearly 18 months now.

It's the longest

we've been in one place

since I can even remember.

I was finally starting to make

real friends. That's dad.

Ever since mom died

when I was little,

it's just been me and him, and

today he's supposed to find out

his new assignment,

another year here

or having to say goodbye,

again.

- Hey.

- Hey.

I have exciting news, Em.

- We're staying in California?

- Even better.

If you thought

it was great here,

you're gonna love Australia.

- Australia?

- It's a 12-month assignment.

It could be extended

to two years.

But how awesome is that?

[Emma] Tell him

that you want to stay,

that you have friends here,

a life.

Uh, tell him something.

Look, I know we've been

moving around a lot

and you have been

so understanding.

But I really think

this will be good for us.

Yeah, yeah,

it's, it's great, dad.

Maybe I can get this extended

into something longer,

but in the meantime,

it'll be an adventure.

Just you and me, right?

- Right.

- Okay.

I'm gonna go back, report in

and then let's head home

and pack.

Okay.

[indistinct announcement on PA]

[Emma] I've already learned

how to say goodbye

in six different languages.

In Japan, they say, "Sayonara."

But no matter

what the language,

it never gets any easier

to say.

[upbeat music]

[indistinct announcement on PA]

Good afternoon, Major Wilson.

I'm Flight Lieutenant

Susan Thompson.

I trust

your flight was enjoyable.

Yes, it was fine. Thank you.

This is my daughter, Emma.

- Hi.

- Lovely to meet you, Emma.

You know, my daughter,

Hannah, is about your age.

She's looking forward

to meeting you.

Cool.

- Shall we?

- Please. Lead the way.

[Susan] I've arranged for you

to move in

to the town house next to mine.

The Air Force retains

several units in the complex

for officer housing.

[Susan]

Welcome to your new home.

This part is just a five-minute

walk from the house

if you ever wanna come down

and take in the view.

Wow.

[music continues]

Hey, Ethan. Come and meet Emma,

your new neighbor.

Hey, nice to meet ya.

Sorry, I'm actually running late

for training,

but maybe we can hang out later?

Yeah. I'd like that.

See? You're making friends

already.

He seemed nice.

What?

Let's get you in

to your new home.

Come on through.

The movers dropped

everything off yesterday.

So I'll leave you

to look around and unpack.

I'm just next door

if you need anything.

- Great. Thanks, Susan.

- [Emma] Thank you.

Wow.

What do you think?

- It's nice.

- Give it a chance, Em.

I-I know

we're gonna love it here.

Let's get you settled in.

[giggles] Thanks.

Wishing on a shooting star

Can you tell me

where you are?

'Cause all I have

is this dream...

- You'll like her.

- Good.

[doorbell rings]

Am I a fool to believe...

- Good morning, Susan.

- Good morning, sir.

Hope it's not too early

for a visit.

[Wilson] No,

it's a very nice surprise.

- This is my daughter, Hannah.

- Nice to meet you.

Right back at you, big guy.

Is that our girl?

Uh, yes.

- Oh, fantastic.

- Uh...

[Susan]

You-you have to forgive Hannah.

She has the manners of an emu.

The thought of you nearby

Is driving me crazy

And I can't wait for love

and I'll wait...

- Oh! Wow!

- Wow!

Mum told me you're

into gymnastics and dance.

- But this, this is special.

- Hm.

I'm Hannah, Susan's daughter.

Sorry.

Flight Lieutenant Thompson's

daughter reporting for duty.

Hi, uh, I'm Emma.

It's very nice to meet you.

- So you're a gymnast.

- Um, used to be.

I'm sort of more focused

on cheerleading now.

I'm kinda hoping to do it

while I'm in Australia.

Cheer, huh?

We're not really into it

as much as you Yanks are,

but we'll find something

for you to do.

- Come on.

- Where are we going?

Uh, only the perfect spot

in Adelaide

for an ex hashtag gymnast,

hashtag cheerleader,

hashtag dancer.

Although...

this might not cut it.

Your room's upstairs?

Uh, yeah.

[Emma] Well, day one,

and already making friends.

It's too bad that making

friends isn't the hard part.

Good. Beautiful.

[Caitlin] Point the toes.

Point, point, point.

Well, here it is.

It's not much, but it's us.

Good job.

Straight on to the beam.

Beautiful work. Let's do it.

- You know... Hey!

- Hey, Mia!

Have you met

my new American friend, Emma?

Ooh! Fresh blood.

This should be fun.

Don't be fooled

by Mia's size, okay?

She's the toughest girl I know.

Are you gonna train with us

today?

Uh, yeah. I-I guess I am.

- [Mia] Cool.

- And that's Issy.

[Hannah] Poor kid,

she was born without a spine.

- Wow.

- [Hannah and Mia] Yeah.

[Emma chuckles]

[Hannah] See?

Namaste, Emma.

Uh, yeah. Namaste to you.

Issy is just basically a hippie,

you know?

Into yoga, soy...

All of that stuff.

- Okay.

- Hey. Hi, I'm Caitlin.

- Hi. Nice to meet you.

- This is our coach, Caitlin.

She was actually

in a great gymnastics team

back in... World War II, was it?

Uh, it was barely 15 years ago,

you little punk.

This is Emma.

She just moved next door.

She's actually a cheerleader

from the States.

So I'm, uh,

secretly trying to recruit her

on to joining our team.

Wait. What?

Oh, didn't I mention that?

Well, we could always use another

member to round out the team.

You wanna show us

what you've got?

Um...

I mean, I wasn't really planning

on jumping in to a team so soon.

Why not?

You'll make friends,

you exercise and...

I don't know,

you can close your eyes

and pretend you're cheerleading.

- Yeah.

- Exactly.

[Emma] Should I tell her?

Should I say that I don't wanna

make a bunch of friends

that I'll have to leave

in a year?

But she'll understand, right?

Hannah, give the poor girl

some space.

She's probably jet-lagged,

and you guilting her

into joining the team

probably isn't helping.

Geez, you don't have to get

all Mama Bear on us all. Ugh.

[Caitlin] Well, why don't you

just stick around?

Watch the girls in action.

No pressure.

- Yeah.

- Come on.

At least join us

for some stretches.

At the very least,

it's gonna be a good workout.

Okay, I mean,

I, I could use a workout.

Excellent.

Well, you guys get stretching.

I'm going to finish off

with the junior squad.

I'm looking forward to seeing

what you can do.

Don't worry. You'll be great.

So, uh, when does

the rest of your team get here?

Uh...

- This is the rest of the team.

- [Issy] Yeah.

Uh, let's just say

we are in a rebuilding phase.

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