Johanna and Maxine

Johanna and Maxine is set in Melbourne in 2016 and is a spin-off from 'Women Who Talk' as published on Literotica and some of the characters do appear in the story. The main protagonists are Johanna and Maxine. When they meet at a pool hall they are drawn to each other. Johanna is a little unsure at first and Maxine is definitely curious, but she is constrained by her boyfriend and her Christian faith.

Author's note: The pool hall no longer exists, it's been bought out and the building used by another business, but I used my artistic licence to recreate it in the same place. If you want to read more about Melanie, Sigrid and Louise then you can read their stories on Literotica, 'Crossing Over' and 'Melanie's Tale,' both are published on Literotica, Johanna is pronounced Yohanna for those who are interested.

AND THEN THERE WAS YOU

Melbourne has long been promoted as a visitor paradise with its iconic skyline, restaurants that sell food from all around the world, its bayside suburbs, and a relaxed feel with the slogan, Australia's most liveable city. Like most cities it has a darker underbelly, brought to international fame by the Gangland wars of the late '90s and early '00s, earning it the title of the murder capital of Australia. Despite this title however most Melburnians were relatively untouched by the violence as rival drug rings fought it out for control of the drug trade in a bloody tit for tat war that claimed over thirty lives. They see themselves as a multicultural people and culturally aware.

However, there is a sameness to the architecture as you travel outwards from the CBD, you can literally trace the history of this city the further out you go. The eastern and western suburbs have their own distinctive subcultures that owe much to the passage of the sun. Easterners always had the sun at their backs as they went to and from work in the city and the demand for more houses in the east resulted in higher prices and a more middle class vibe. People in the west always had the sun in their eyes and were working class. This was exacerbated during the waves of immigration after the Second World war when new migrants were drawn to cheaper houses in the west and north. Some could argue that this was a deliberate policy to push migrants further out west and north, away from the plusher eastern suburbs.

The outer suburbs, in general, have long been lampooned as a cultural wasteland, as popularised by the famous Kath and Kim comedy series set in Fountain Gate. Another cultural backwater is the outer eastern suburb of Bayswater North. Up until the late '80s it was possible to find green fields interspersed with factories, but as the developers cast their eyes further east the greenery was slowly swallowed up by houses, shops and more factories. Only Montrose and Kilsyth retained a little of their green places.

Maxine let her mind drift outwards as her boyfriend tapped the wheel in time with the music. Three months ago she'd flown out of Heathrow after a three-week holiday in Europe. She'd spent ten days with Gillian, her best friend from high school, Gillian worked as an English language teacher at a high school and lived with her girlfriend, Karin.

Maxine was entranced by Stockholm where much older buildings melded seamlessly with modern architecture. Gillian had bought her a rail card and visitor pass so she could cruise around during the day and check out museums and other tourist attractions. The nights were spent with Gillian and Karin and it was obvious that they were very much in love.

She had never thought of Gillian as being gay because she'd always been the prettiest girl in school and Maxine was ashamed to admit that she'd fallen for an age old trope that should have been put to bed long ago along with other prejudices and ideas. Spending time with two lesbians had opened her eyes although she hadn't delved too deeply into it in case it was seen as intrusive.

Gillian however, had admitted she'd always felt drawn to women even in high school, something that Maxine found almost disturbing although she'd never admit to it but she'd felt the same thing over the years. She did modify her views on gay marriage and relationships though, they were as normal as anyone else.

The rest of her holiday had seen her visiting Helsinki, Warsaw, Berlin, Copenhagen and Paris before making her way via train to London and her return flight. She'd felt genuinely moved and excited at what she'd seen and yet when she arrived back in Melbourne it was as if nothing had happened and she'd struggled to fit back into Australian society. The travel bug had truly bitten and Maxine spent hours scouring the internet checking out travel vlogs whilst she saved her money and just lately she had started learning Swedish with the help of an app.

Only her sister, Rowena showed a passing interest in travelling but that was because Rowena and her boyfriend Dave were planning a honeymoon next year. Maxine's boyfriend Mark on the other hand saw no need to leave Australia, although he did want to visit some of the mega churches in America. She had started going out with Mark two weeks before she flew to London and he was there to greet her along with her mother and sister when she returned.

Maxine stared at the CD player in Mark's car as he turned the volume up and frowned as the sounds of Petra filled the car. She wasn't against Christian artists but Petra dated back to the '80s and she was a liberal-minded Christian. Her music collection was an eclectic mix of music from the last few decades, most of it kept in the cloud. Mark on the other hand was old school, his music was all on CDs or vinyl, the latter was an even more expensive way to collect music.

She turned away and stared out the window as Mark put his foot down and picked up speed, under normal circumstances she might have commented on his music but tonight he'd finally agreed to come to the pool parlour with her. That came with the caveat that he not drink and she'd agreed, he could drive and she could have a drink instead. However he looked a little pensive when he picked her up from the house she shared with her sister, Rowena and Dave.

"How long are we staying there?"

"I don't know," she'd shrugged as she fastened the seatbelt, "a few hours."

"A few hours?" Mark stared at her.

"A couple of hours," she replied.

Maxine closed her eyes and let herself go, it'd been a tough day at work although she'd certainly had harder days and she was looking forward to a night out that didn't involve church activities, Mark liked his Friday night games nights with friends from church. They'd sit around playing on the Playstation whilst she sat and watched them or read on her Kindle but just lately Maxine had become bored with the same old routine and for the last three weeks she'd steadfastly refused to go out with him on Friday night. At first Mark had been in agreement but two days ago he'd called her at home and asked if there was something wrong with their relationship.

"Perhaps there's something we can pray about together? Seek the Lord's will?"

If there was one thing Maxine didn't want to do, it was pray with Mark about anything. For a start they hadn't been going out together for that long and praying together felt too weird. Instead she'd come up with a suggestion to go out somewhere else, like the pool parlour. That idea had popped into her head at the time along with a trip to the cinema or dinner at a restaurant, but as they drew nearer and nearer to the place she could sense the tension in the air and that was confirmed when Mark turned the music down.

"That rain's getting worse," he complained, "I'm not sure this is a good idea."

"What do you mean? We'll be inside," she opened her eyes.

"We still have to get from the car to the front door," he explained.

"And?" Maxine rolled her eyes, "we'd have to walk from the car to the house, it'll be fine."

Mark muttered something under his breath and she stared straight ahead, not wanting to say more on the subject lest he change his mind but there was no denying her irritation.

***

Johanna Birger avoided Bayswater North during the week as she drove from her home in Montrose to her workplace in Ringwood but on Friday and Saturday nights she drove down to the industrial estate on the corner of Canterbury and Colchester Roads. The estate was actually located in Kilsyth South and nestled in amongst the factories was a pool hall with a licence to serve alcohol and a small bistro, the food wasn't that good but Johanna didn't go for the food. She went to play pool or snooker and chat up the women, it was a more casual environment than the nightclubs where one had to shout to make yourself heard and fight the guys off.

When she first arrived from Sweden years ago she'd made the classic mistake of visiting nightclubs and whilst there were lots of women keen to date an American-Swede, she'd soon encountered the ever-present undercurrent of violence in the clubs and abandoned them soon afterwards.

She folded the collar of her blouse up and flicked out her long brown hair that framed a longish angular-shaped face and brown eyes. She didn't consider herself supermodel material but on more than one occasion she'd been described as a classic beauty, which was pleasing. She wore a white blouse, blue jeans and a black waistcoat and ankle boots.

She turned to pick up her pool cue, she'd bought it online three months ago and considered it one of her better 'impulse' purchases. It was made of straight-grained maple and quite a few men down at the parlour had admired the cue, although it could be argued some were also admiring the woman who held the cue. It had become something of a lucky charm that had helped her to escape the nightclub scene.

A couple of minutes later she slid behind the wheel of her red Toyota RAV4 and closed the door, the windscreen was still wet from the rainstorm that had moved in from the west a few hours earlier but the forecast was for clearing showers overnight and a blue skies tomorrow. She plugged her phone in and told it to phone Miranda.

"Calling Miranda," the phone responded.

Miranda answered the phone as Johanna was backing out of her driveway and sounded out of breath.

"Johanna, hi, what's up?"

"Are you and John going tonight?"

"We were but he's hurt his back so I'm staying home tonight, sorry."

"That's fine, how is he feeling?"

"He's taken some paracetamol and he's lying on the couch, the poor babe."

"Shame," she chuckled, "I hope he's feeling better."

"It's all that bending over cars at work that does it, it's not good for you."

"I agree, it's not a job I could do," she changed gear and nudged the accelerator, "well take care of the poor man, I'll drop by sometime over the weekend."

"Yeah, thanks. Are you on your way there?"

"I am," she replied, "I'll say hello to the others for you."

"Thanks, sorry about all this."

"Don't sweat the little things," she replied, "even though a sore back isn't a little thing."

She farewelled her after that and concentrated on driving, the rain started again as she drove past a concrete processing plant and she flicked her wipers on. The inclement weather might keep a few regular patrons at home but hopefully some of her new friends were there.

There weren't as many cars as usual out the front of the pool hall when Johanna pulled into a bay, she could have easily taken up part of the next bay without upsetting anyone but she kept within the lines and stared out at the rain. It was heavier now and she glanced at her dashboard clock that showed 20:05. She could reverse out of the bay and just drive away and no one would know she'd even turned up but then she spotted Jodie's white car parked almost behind her and a little further away was Macca's dark blue ute. That meant some of her new friends were here but just as she put her hand on the door handle a Toyota pulled up next to her and came to a halt.

Johanna's eyes were drawn to the woman in the front passenger seat. She had blonde hair and was talking to the man behind the wheel. A moment later she opened the door and the interior light came on, revealing more details. She had a heart-shaped face and looked to be in her early twenties or her late teens, it was hard to work out but the woman stared straight at her and then she smiled and got out of the car. She turned to stare at the man and a moment later she threw her hands in the air and called out.

"What're you waiting for? A written invitation?"

She slammed the door and then her boyfriend got out of the car, the woman turned to look at her and Johanna read the look in her eyes. Obviously she wanted to come here but he hadn't wanted to, hence the challenge. She was wearing a pink blouse under a denim jacket, the blouse was tucked into blue jeans, the hiking boots lent a certain mannish air to her outfit, which along with the way she'd spoken to him suggested she was the more dominant one. The man looked to be in his mid twenties with a short back and sides, he was more conservatively dressed in a blue shirt under a black jumper and blue jeans. He looked up at the overcast sky as his girlfriend hurried to the front door and then he too started walking.

Johanna walked into the pool hall about a minute later. The man and woman she'd seen earlier were at the bar and she turned her head, scanning the rows of tables until she spotted Jodie and Sue down at the far end to her right. Jodie had her back to her but Sue spotted her and said something to her as Johanna started walking towards them. They were next to Macca and his girlfriend Brenda, who'd been together for the last eighteen months.

Jodie and Sue had been sharing a house for the last three years and you couldn't meet a nicer couple. Jodie was the smallest at five foot four inches and she'd dyed her hair bright pink a few weeks ago. She was the mischievous one and delighted in practical jokes. Sue was five foot six and worked as a physical therapist for a sports centre in Ringwood, she was a natural blonde and had a quiet confidence that melded perfectly with her more talkative other half.

"Hey," Johanna greeted them, "Miranda and John won't make it, John's done his back in and Miranda's playing nursemaid."

"Oh right," Macca ran a hand through his long blonde hair, "are you sure it hasn't got anything to do with the gram he just scored off Trevor tonight?"

"Oh," she laid her cue case on a nearby bench, "I was just taking Miranda's word for it, so Trevor won't be here either?"

"Maybe," Macca shrugged, "not saying he'll be fit to play though."

"Ooh, your two o'clock," Jodie's eyes narrowed.

Johanna glanced around to find the couple who'd parked next her walking towards them and a slight smile nudged her lips. The woman had a glass of Coke probably mixed with alcohol but the man had a glass of lemon squash, he was obviously the nominated driver. They took one of the nearby tables and proceeded to set up the balls. Johanna glanced at the denim jacket and suddenly noticed the Swedish flag pin on it. The pin took her by surprise because it was so unusual in this part of the world.

"So, who're you playing with?" Sue spoke up.

"Huh?" Johanna pulled her eyes from the woman, "it doesn't matter, an all girl game? Or do you want to partner up with me and Macca?"

"Make it an all girl game," Macca glanced at another table, "I'm going to practice for awhile," he took a step forward.

As luck would have it, Johanna, Brenda, Jodie and Sue took the table next to the couple, but for the next fifteen minutes she focused on the game. Brenda was a half decent player but Jodie had been playing pool for a lot longer, although they were pretty evenly matched.

Nevertheless when Johanna missed an easy shot it left the table open for Jodie who potted two balls in swift succession and it was while she was lining up for a third shot that Johanna finally turned to the woman at the other table.

"Have you ever been to Sweden?"

"Huh?" Her eyes shifted.

"Your badge," she pointed to it, "my family live in Stockholm."

At first she thought she'd crossed some social boundary but then the woman straightened up and smiled at her.

"Wow, what're the odds," she held out her hand, "Maxine, Maxine Petersen, my best friend lives in Stockholm with her girlfriend."

Johanna's eyes widened at the way she said Stockholm with emphasis on the second syllable.

"You even said it like a Swede," she shook her hand, "I'm Johanna, my family live in Slussen."

"I loved Slussen," she replied, "I went on the Millennium tour when I was there a few months ago, I've been trying to learn Swedish with an app but it only takes you so far. I really need a language partner if you know what I mean."

"Jo, jo," she replied, "I can speak fluent Swedish," she glanced at the man.

"This is my boyfriend, Mark," Maxine introduced him.

"Hej," she greeted him.

She was rewarded with a slight smile that looked as if he was being held at gunpoint. Maybe he was just the reserved type.

"You're up," Brenda nudged her.

"Tack," she replied and Maxine grinned.

"Tack means thank you," she told Mark.

"Yeah, no worries." he leaned over to pot a ball.

Another couple of minutes went past before they spoke again.

"So, are you visiting Australia or living here?"

"Living here," she replied, "I live in Montrose."

"So do I," she replied, "whereabouts are you?"

"Aileen Avenue," she glanced at Mark briefly.

"I'm on the other side of the roundabout, Bell Street."

"Oh," she nodded, "okay," she glanced over as Jodie called out.

"And there goes the eight ball," she straightened up, "come on, put your dollar in."

"Fuck it," she swore.

Brenda stepped away from the table.

"I'm going to the loo," she glanced at Macca, "you want another drink, honey?"

"I'm just sitting on my pot," he held his beer up.

Johanna shrugged and walked over to the bench where her handbag sat. Jodie sidled over to speak to Maxine and Mark, a moment later she turned around to find Jodie nodding at their table.

"One game?" Maxine glanced at the table.

"Yeah, one game, you can partner up with Johanna against me and Sue, your boyfriend can play Macca and the loser plays against Brenda."

"Sounds complicated," Mark replied.

"No it's not," Maxine replied, "sure, it should make it more exciting, just let us finish this game and we'll join you."

Their game finished a minute or two later when Maxine potted the eight ball and by then Brenda had come back from the bar with drinks for her and Macca.

The games started after that and Johanna soon discovered that they were evenly matched, Maxine was a pretty decent player when compared to her boyfriend.

"I used to practice on the table at home when I was a kid," she explained as she potted another ball, "my dad taught me everything I know about pool and snooker, but don't ask me to play billiards, the tables are always too big."

"I was average when I started," Johanna admitted, "but I'm getting better, especially after I bought my own cue."

"It's pretty cool," she felt it, "maple?"

"Ja," she replied and glanced over as Jodie squeezed one of Sue's butt cheeks. Sue grinned as she lined up the ball.

"Get your hands off my arse, there's plenty of time for that later."

"Ooh, my favourite line," Jodie giggled.

Maxine's eyes shifted as she looked at them.

"Are you two together?"

"Yeah," Jodie leaned against the table, "we've been living together for three years and a bit but we were going out for six months before that but we broke up for about six weeks, it was the longest six weeks of my life," she glanced down as Sue potted the ball.

"Okay," Maxine smiled slightly, "so... you're married?"

"No," Sue straightened up, "but we've been together for so long it just seemed like a waste of money. I always worry about couples who live together for a few years and then get married, they often wind up divorced a few years later, we just didn't want to take the chance."