Annie had been amazed when she handed in her voucher the next day and received her check. She had made sixty dollars just for standing around for three hours. That was more then she made working a six hour shift at Starbucks. It almost didn't seem right.

As she went home Annie found she had an extra spring in her step. She wasn't generally a risk taker. And now she had taken a risk that had paid off, both literally and figuratively. It felt good for once to have gone out of her comfort zone, especially since doing so had her come out ahead.

A few days later she felt her phone buzz in her pocket in class. As soon as class ended she pulled it out and listened to an interesting voice mail:

'Good Morning Ms. Edison. My name is Shelia Ritter. I'm an art teacher at Riverside elementary. I teach an adult drawing class at night and my model just canceled on me. I got your number from Robert Miller, and I was wondering if you were available to pose tonight. I would need you here at 6pm for a four hour session. I usually pay models eighteen dollars an hour, but since its last minute I can bump it up to twenty five an hour. Please get back to me right away so I know if you're available. My number is 586-628-1763.'

Annie's eyes widened as she took the information in. A hundred dollars for one night of posing. She quickly phoned Ms. Ritter and told her that she was available to pose.

Once it was over Annie evaluated the experience, and found that it wasn't much different from her first modeling session. Again she changed in a bathroom (this time in one across the hall), then waited until it was time for her to get up on the pedestal. Once again the first few moments she shed her robe were terrifying, then afterwards she relaxed and just stood there. She posed in forty five minute increments, and then rested for fifteen minutes before starting again. Like the first time the students observed her closely at first, then gradually spend more time looking at their work then at her. Unlike the first professor Ms. Ritter was more hands on with her students. During the class she would walk around and study each student's progress, and give suggestions on how to improve their drawing.

The biggest difference Annie found was that she wasn't as petrified this time as she had been the first time she did it. It was still somewhat nerve wracking, but not as all terrifying as it was the first time. After it was over and she thought about it, she found she could see herself doing this regularly.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

And so Annie found that she now had a new profession she moonlighted at. Within the first few weeks since she started she ended up being put in contact with several different art teachers. Some like Mr. Miller put her on their regular rotation of models. Others, like Ms. Ritter, would only call if one of her scheduled models canceled at the last minute. It got to the point where on average she was posing about once a week, though some weeks she got two or three appointments.

As time went on Annie found that Britta had been right. It actually wasn't that big of a deal to pose nude. She was pretty much ignored when she worked, with the students generally focusing more on their drawings then on her. She found that she felt more at ease naked in a classroom then walking clothed to her car after class ended.

Though once she started getting the hang of it, she did run into two issues. The first was holding poses. Sometimes teachers would ask her beforehand to do a specific pose, such as lying down or something that projected the illusion of motion. The motion ones were tough to hold for. After a few minutes her muscles began to feel sore, and it became an endurance test to hold it until break time.

The other issue Annie ran into was boredom. After the initial thrill and terror of being naked in front of others was gone Annie realized it was boring just standing around for hours at a time. During one class when she was lying down on her stomach she almost fell asleep. She ended up having to come up with ways to keep her mind stimulated whenever she was posing. She'd mentally go over what she learned in class that day, or make lists in her head. Sometimes she's focus on things in the classroom as she stood there, such as what shoes people had on and wondering how many places they had traveled to. Or how many people drew with their left hand vs. their right.

But despite the issues that came up, Annie found that she didn't mind posing nude. Like Britta had said, you got used to it after a while. And it actually wasn't as sexual as one would think. No one talked to her or ever did anything suggestive while she was working. It got to the point where she could just zone out and not even really think about the nudity.

And as time went on Annie began to find that posing nude was gaining her other benefits in addition to the extra money she made. Her confidence in herself improved tremendously. She first noticed it when she had to give an oral presentation in one of her classes. While she was no stranger to talking in front of a large group of people due to debate, it was harder for her to talk in front of a smaller group. But as soon as she got up in front of the class she found that her nervousness was completely gone. She looked at everyone staring at her and miraculously found that she had no problem speaking to them. She kicked her presentation's ass and got not only an A+, but a standing ovation afterwards.

She also began to not be as self conscious in how she dressed. It wasn't so much that she radically changed her wardrobe. Rather it was just little things that she didn't really think about now. Like not always wearing tights when she wore skirts or dresses. Or wearing a top without a cardigan or jacket covering her.

But she didn't truly realize how comfortable she had become with herself until the second paintball tournament. When the madness began she had been wearing a long heavy skirt to go with the western theme. And since she knew she couldn't run in that skirt she took it off, leaving her in tights and Tomb Raider length short shorts. Once upon a time she would have kept the skirt on out of modesty and embarrassment, which would have led to her being taken out early. But now she had no problem running around in a pair of tiny shorts. She hardly even thought of her wardrobe choice as she focused on staying unpainted and fighting her way across campus.

And her confidence in herself extended even further then in what she wore and in public speaking. It allowed her to better deal with people one on one. If someone tried to bull shit her or push her around she found she was able to push them right back. Her confidence in herself meant that she was using her usual 'Disney Look' less and instead was becoming truly assertive. She was able to call Britta out when she went on rants, or Pierce when he said something offensive to her. But mostly she was better able to go toe to toe with Jeff. Rather than just let him talk and charm himself into getting his way she was able to challenge him and call him out. She always smiled to herself when she saw the shocked look on his face when she used his own tactics against him. She was no longer the naïve girl who would step back so others could simply get their way. She was finally becoming assertive and believing in herself. In short she was finally growing up.

True it took a rather unconventional tactic to achieve it, but it was still happening.