In high school, we did different things. She’s always been the performer, singing her way around the house, but we could always text and say, “I had a bad day. Wanna go for a walk around the oval?” We knew immediately if the other was struggling or getting caught up in some drama. I cared about school, but sport was demanding. Gem was better at putting her head down, staying up late to study and accepting leadership roles: she was school captain. She played the lead in the school musical, Sophie in Mamma Mia!, and made me cry. When I was in the 800-metre heat at last year’s Paris Olympics, I was on the starting line in this huge stadium, feeling overwhelmed and scared. Looking up and seeing her – I knew exactly where she was sitting – made me feel so grounded. Giving her that hug afterwards, I just lost it. We do feel disconnected now. We spent nearly every minute together until we were 18 and now we’re off chasing our own dreams. Even when we’re both at home, I’m up early for training while she’s sleeping in, then she’s staying up late in rehearsals [Gemma is performing in Legally Blonde, which is coming to the end of its run at The National Theatre in St Kilda], while I’m recovering. We’re ships in the night.