It was nice being able to sleep in, after two rough days at school. Since there was a grocery store near by, Tommy went and bought some groceries for their mini refrigerator. He also bought a microwave, a can opener, and a toaster. At least this would give them a break from Theresa and having to eat in the tiny room. He fixed them each two blueberry waffles. Since it was was cold that morning, they decided to have breakfast in bed. Kimberly went and picked up the news paper from the mailbox which was outside their room. And when she saw the headline, she dashed back into the room.

"Tommy, you've got to see this!" Kimberly cried as she laid the paper on the bed.

"Three missing people in Paris. Caroline Hart, Jan Oliver, and James Oliver," Tommy read. "Not much information is known at the present time. All that is known at this point is that Jan and James Oliver were last spotted yesterday, when she came to the news paper office."

"I knew this move to Paris was going to be nothing but trouble," Kimberly complained as she took a sip of juice. Suddenly someone slipped an envelope under the door. Kimberly got up and picked up the envelope. She opened it;Her eyes widened with fear as she started to read the letter. "Tommy, we are going to have to report to Pierre's art classes to be models .The contract has our signatures on it. But, I don't remember signing anything."

Kimberly handed Tommy the papers and he started to read the guidelines. "I don't remember signing any papers either," Tommy agreed. "I can't believe we're are going to have to do this-"

"-do what?" Kimberly interrupted.

"Kimberly," Tommy started taking a deep breath and took hold of her hand. "During the modeling sessions, you and I will be nude, for several hours. But, during breaks, we will be given a silk robe to wear."

Tears started to run down Kimberly's face as she threw her arms around Tommy's neck. He wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and just held her. He had suspected that he was wanting to use them as models after hearing a phone conversation. Tommy glanced back at the news paper.

"With my parents missing, all I have left is Kimberly," Tommy said to himself. He pulled her closer. "And with her mom missing, I am all she has left. In order to survive being in Paris, we are going to need each other more than we ever did before."

Tommy finished getting undressed and slipped on a black silk robe. He heard a knock at the door.

"Tommy, are you ready?"Kimberly asked.

"I am," Tommy answered as he grabbed his bag and opened the door. Kimberly lead Tommy to their lockers and the put their clothes inside. They unzipped their book bags and put their communicators in them.

"We are ready for you two," Pierre stated. "Follow me."

The turned around and Pierre was standing behind them. Kimberly took hold of Tommy's hand and they followed Pierre down the hall. They entered the last room and there were art students ready to do figure drawing.

"Remove your robes," Pierre instructed.

Tommy let his robe fall to the floor and he got a lot of stares from the other students. That didn't matter to him. All he had on his mind was how Kimberly was going to react. He watched as her robe feel to the floor and her eyes locked on him. Tommy could help from drooling. She was always the most beautiful girl that he had ever laid eyes on. But, seeing her nude form only added to her beauty. She had the prefect figure, the prefect shoulders, just everything he saw about her prefect.

"You two are going to Have to pose together," Pierre started as he pointed to a table. "We are doing a session on romance."

Tommy got up on the table with Kimberly. He saw she was trembling and it gave him an idea. He kneeled down and held out his arms. Kimberly dropped to her knees and threw her arms around Tommy neck. She rested her head on his shoulders. "You are safe now," he whispered as he wrapped his arms around her tiny waisted. He rested his head on her shoulder. "I'm going to protect you."

"That pose is prefect!" Pierre beamed. "Class, these two are actually dating. I can tell they both really love each other. I could not ask for a better couple. Now, I am going to tell you my rules. Don't touch the models. Put the model's comfort before the artist's interest. Don't ignore red flags. Decide what environment is most comfortable."

As Kimberly remained stiff like a statue, she immediately got comfort from being in Tommy's arms. His warm skin was touching hers and it was soft and smooth. She had always seen him was tall, muscular, and handsome boy. But, the way he pulled her into his arms really opened up her eyes. He wasn't even paying attention to the fact that the were both nude. He was more focused on protecting her. This really opened up her eyes and she really realized how much this boy loved her.

Even though Tommy couldn't tell her at the present time, holding Kimberly in his arms bringing him a lot of comfort as well. Her silk Carmel hair hair was touching his face. Ever since he moved to Angel Grove, this girl had been his best friend. And when he had yo go Paris, he hated every think about it. Expect, for the fact that he was bringing Kimberly with him. That was something that he never experienced before. Having this girl with him made the biggest difference in the world. He had his best friend be his side and he could talk to her about anything. Kimberly tightened her arms around his neck.

"I love you, Tommy," she whispered.

"I love you too, Beautiful," Tommy whispered back.

Kimberly was definitely a keeper. And after going through everything that they had been through, he decided he wanted things to be permanent between them.

Author's note:

What will happen in the modeling classes? Will Tommy be able to make things more permanent between them. Find out in the next chapter.