Tim and Amy

She winked at me, and I grinned back.

The last day of term came, and I pulled the Mini into the garage with Laura in the passenger seat. A large square shape covered in a cloth occupied the back seat, and the first task was to get the canvas inside, still covered, and set it on its easel in the dining room.

"Can we look?" said Pam. "Absolutely not," grinned Laura, "it's nowhere near finished."

"Ok," Tim said, "we'll just have to control our anticipation a little longer."

After a couple of days it felt like Laura had always been there, and Tim came home on Christmas Eve to find her helping Pam and me to decorate the tree.

"Hope you've all been good," he said, "or Santa won't stop on his way past."

We had supper, then watched television for a while. Tim yawned. "I could do with an early night," he said. "No doubt you two will be rampaging about the house first thing, eager to open your presents."

He headed up the stairs, and Pam followed him after a little while.

Laura and I went up to bed, but I remembered there were a couple of presents I still had to put under the tree. As I was tiptoeing down the stairs, I encountered Tim coming up, obviously from a similar errand.

"So, you're Miss Santa, are you?" he teased. I put my tongue out at him, then leaned over to kiss him on the cheek.

"Just a couple of last minute things," I said. "You did get something for Laura as well, didn't you."

"I don't think either of you will be disappointed," Tim chuckled. I kissed him again, then slipped past. I placed my packages carefully under the tree and went back to bed.

Christmas morning dawned, and I opened the curtains to a carpet of white. "Wow, Laura," I said, "come and look at the snow."

She joined me at the window and we stood for a while, looking out at the garden.

"Come on," I said, "let's see what Santa's brought for us." We went downstairs, and when Tim and Pam came down we were kneeling by the tree picking up gifts and looking at the labels.

"We didn't start opening them without you," said Laura anxiously.

"It's OK," Tim said. "Go ahead."

Soon the floor was covered in paper and scraps of sticky tape, as we all took it in turns opening our presents. Laura and I ooh'ed and aah'ed at the necklace Tim had got for Pam – he'd told us he'd seen her admiring it in the window of the jeweller's in town.

Tim got a sweater from Pam – "Don't worry," she whispered in his ear, but just loud enough for us to hear, "I got something more exciting for you, but it's for your eyes only."

He grinned, and kissed her, prompting gentle teasing from me and Laura.

Laura and I had bought Tim some expensive aftershave between us, and some novelty socks.

"Thanks, girls," he said, and we each deigned to accept a kiss on the cheek, doing a brilliant job of pretending that kisses from Uncle Tim were a bit embarrassing.

Last of all Laura and I opened our presents from Tim. Laura said, "Gosh, Tim, you're very generous – thank you." He'd got us both shopping vouchers, and I was sure he knew we'd want to go out looking as soon as the sales started.

"Well, that's it," said Pam. "Lunch won't be long."

We sat down at the dining table, and Tim looked at my book-covered desk and Laura's easel. "A lot has changed in the last year," he reflected.

The rest of Christmas Day was spent watching television – Laura and I hadn't seen a few of the old films before, and we pretended to be horrified when Pam and Tim sang along to bits of the Sound of Music.

When the last film worth watching was over, we all went upstairs to bed, Laura and I clutching our loot.

The next day Laura and I begged Tim to accompany us to the sales. "This seems to be my fate on Boxing Day," he said to Pam.

"Your fault for giving them something to spend," she teased. "Go! If you get fed up, you can go and look in the bookshop or sit and have coffee – they can keep each other company."

Tim drove us down to the town, and we walked from the car park, me one side of Tim, Laura the other, our arms linked through his.

"Where first?" Tim asked.

"Everywhere!" I said, grinning.

"Clothes, of course," said Laura. We went into my favourite fashion shop, and found Tim a chair just outside the changing area. Then we commandeered a sales assistant – she looked almost relieved to have two customers who had a clear idea what they wanted – and toured the clothing racks, picking something to try on from almost every one.

We disappeared into a cubicle, giggling. Every few minutes one or other of us would pop out with, "What do you think of this, Tim?" as we tried on a dazzling selection of different styles. He did his best to give an opinion, sometimes evoking a roll of the eyes, sometimes a shy smile.

Some of the outfits were truly stunning, and at one point when I appeared in an off the shoulder evening gown, Tim said, "Amy?"

I paused, watching his face.

"Get that one – really."

I grinned and said, "I'd pretty much decided to – but seeing your face when I came out made my mind up for definite."

At length we decided that we had seen and tried on everything worth trying, and went to pay for the things we'd settled on.

"Now," I said when we returned with the bags, "let's drop this stuff off at the car and you can buy us lunch at that little Italian place. You'll love it, Laura – I can't pronounce anything on the menu, but Tim can, and the food is to die for. You'll get us a bottle of wine as well, won't you, Tim?"

"Slow down!" Tim protested. "Of course I will."

We walked back to the car and filled the boot, it seemed, with bags. Then we walked back down to the little restaurant, and Tim grinned as his friend Mario the owner raised his eyebrows at us and spoke in Italian. Tim replied, smiling.

"What are you saying?" asked Laura.

"He thinks you are both very beautiful and that I am a very lucky man," Tim paraphrased.

This set us off giggling, and we had only just managed to retrieve our composure when Mario returned with our food. He poured wine for us all, then left us to enjoy our meal.

"This is heavenly," said Laura with her mouth full. "I could get used to being spoilt."

"Get used to it," I grinned. "Tim can't help himself."

Tim rolled his eyes. "Who could refuse the two of you anything?"

We exchanged glances, but managed not to dissolve into laughter this time. We finished our meal, and Tim said, "Where next? We have all afternoon."

"Actually," I said, "could you take us up to the campus? There's something Laura needs."

"Ok," Tim said, puzzled.

We pulled up outside Laura's hall of residence, and she said, "This time I need you to come up."

The three of us squeezed into the lift and rode to the top floor.

"Come in," Laura said, opening the door of her study bedroom. The walls were covered with sketches and other pieces of Laura's art work.

"Gosh," Tim said, "this takes me back a bit. I got up to a few escapades in places like this."

"Well, it's not an escapade," I said, "but we do have a surprise for you."

"Close your eyes," said Laura.

Tim obediently shut his eyes, and Laura fetched a covered canvas from the other side of the room. She stood the canvas on an easel, and moved it in front of Tim. Then she uncovered the painting.

"You can look now," she said.

Tim opened his eyes. "Wow," he managed.

Laura had painted herself and me in classical style as two naiads emerging from a forest pool. On the bank, a reclining figure – obviously Tim – watched from a distance, a bow and arrows by his side marking him out as a hunter. A shaft of sunlight reached through the canopy of trees and illuminated the two forest spirits, turning blonde hair to gold and auburn to rich copper.

"Do you like it?" asked Laura anxiously.

"It's amazing," said Tim. "I'm not sure we could hang it at home, though."

Laura grinned. "I'll keep it here, and you can come and look at it whenever you want."

I said regretfully, "Think it's time we made for home – the shops will be closing soon."

As Laura was opening the door, Tim said, "Laura? Thanks so much for an amazing Christmas present."

When we arrived home, Pam was making dinner. "Good trip to the shops?" she said.

"Yes, thanks," Laura and I chorused. "We'll show you some of our things after dinner," I said.

"That'd be nice," said Pam.

The rest of the day went more or less normally – Pam admired the clothes that Laura and I showed her – and we all went to bed fairly early.

The next day we sat at breakfast and discussed what we would do with the day.

"I need to work on my canvas," said Laura, "so could I have the dining room to myself?"

"Sure," said Pam. "Amy, I guess you're not allowed to watch either, so what would you like to do?"

"I know this sounds boring," I said, "but I think I'd like to do some preparation with Tim for my placement. We'll have to find somewhere else to work, though."

"You could use the table in the extension," Pam suggested. "I'd planned to pop over and see Sally and John sometime over the break, so I can do that today and you can get on."

Tim helped me carry my books from the dining room into the extension, then Laura said firmly, "No peeking," and closed the dining room door.

Pam left for Sally's shortly after, and I grinned at Tim. "Alone again, finally," I said.

"Laura's still around," Tim reminded me.

"I'd be surprised if she even remembered to come out for lunch once she's in the zone," I grinned. "I'll leave a note outside the door reminding her where the fridge is!"

We went through to the extension and Tim said, "So, you want me to start filling you in on the business?"

"Definitely," I said, a serious expression on my face. Tim picked up a pad and started to talk, drawing diagrams to illustrate what he was explaining.

After a couple of hours he said, "I think you need a break – your brain must be whirling."

"That was a lot to take in," I admitted.

"So what about some lunch? Shall we rescue Laura?" Tim grinned.

Laura emerged from the dining room in response to Tim's knock. Her hair was tousled and she had a streak of paint down one cheek.

"How's it going?" I asked.

"Getting there," Laura said. "More work on it tomorrow. Maybe let you look the next day."

Tim made us sandwiches for lunch. Laura ate distractedly, and when Tim said that he and I would go and start work again, she just nodded and vanished back into the dining room.

"Wow, she's really into it," Tim said. I nodded. "Well, we'd better get cracking."

When Pam returned, she came into the extension. Tim and I were surrounded by books and hand-scribbled diagrams; I got up to hug Pam, and burbled enthusiastically about org charts and objectives, annual operating plans and cash management.

"I'm impressed," said Pam. "Sounds like you've got a real flair for this."

"She'll do well," Tim confirmed. "Did you see Laura on the way in?"

"Well," grinned Pam, "there was an apparition with streaks of paint on her face and in her hair, so I think that must have been her."

Tim and I looked at each other in mock horror. "She wasn't that bad at lunchtime," Tim said. "We made sure she ate something."

"I threw in a rag and some turps," laughed Pam, "so hopefully she'll get most of it off."

We went back through to the house, and found Laura sitting in the living room in clean clothes and with only one or two traces of paint in hard-to-reach spots.

"What?" she said, suppressing a giggle. "Did I frighten you, Pam?"

"Not really," grinned Pam. "I'll make us a proper dinner, shall I?"

As we ate, we discussed plans for the following day. Laura was determined to finish her canvas, and I wanted to carry on picking Tim's brains to get ready for my placement.

"I'm sorry, Pam," Tim said. "Tell you what, the day after tomorrow, all studying, painting, seriousness of any kind is banned. We'll all go out somewhere for the day, then I'll bribe these two to go out to the cinema for the evening and you and I can have the place to ourselves."

Laura and I pantomimed knowing expressions.

"That's enough, you two," said Pam, smiling. "We did have a life before you two girls gatecrashed, you know."

After breakfast the next day, Laura disappeared back into the dining room, while Tim and I went through to the extension and picked up where we'd left off the previous day, working steadily all morning. Pam made us all sandwiches for lunch; she was careful to let Laura take her plate at the dining room door, so as not to risk catching an unintended glimpse of Laura's canvas.

When Pam came back through to the extension to collect our plates, she said, "I think I'll pop into town myself this afternoon, have a look round. Perhaps I'll find something to go with that lovely necklace, Tim."

"Great idea," Tim said. "Might it have something to do with tomorrow night, by any chance?"

"Could just be," said Pam smiling. She left, and we heard the car door shut and Pam drive away.

We were still working, Tim drawing flowcharts rapidly and me making notes, when Pam returned.

"Still at it, you two?" she said. "Laura was just cleaning her brushes, I assume that's a good sign."

"Must be," I said. "Let's go through and see if she's ready to reveal all."

Laura was in the kitchen putting her damp brushes tidily away in their case when we went back into the house.

"Hi," she said. "Do you want to see?"

"Is it really finished?" I asked.

In answer, Laura walked to the dining room door and pushed it open.

"Go in and look," she invited.

I was first in, and Pam and Tim followed. Laura had positioned the easel so that her canvas was illuminated by one of the ceiling spots, and all three of us stopped in our tracks as our eyes fell on the picture.

As I'd anticipated, the image was of a girl, nude, reclining. The viewpoint was from behind her right shoulder, so her face was not seen. In front of her, almost as though she floated above it, was an azure sea, strangely lit, not warm or tropical, but not stormy or forbidding either; simply calm. Above her, a blue sky at the horizon, fading to darkness above – not the velvet of space, but a flat, almost dull black.

There was nothing soft or sentimental about the picture, every line was sharp, the light somehow penetrating, the colours bright. It was totally realistic in one sense, yet utterly unworldly.

Though the girl's face was not shown, somehow the way she was depicted conveyed a profound impression; she was an unfallen Eve, and Mary face to face with the angel, and yet unmistakeably I could see myself in the picture. Although the girl was unclothed, there was nothing erotic about the painting.

We stood transfixed, as though time had stood still. Then, as if waking from a dream, Tim said, "Laura, that's remarkable. I can see where you got at least part of your inspiration from."

Laura nodded. I looked puzzled, and Pam said, "I'll show you later – I have an art book with the picture in that Tim has in mind."

"Does it have a title, Laura?" Pam continued.

Laura thought for a while, and shook her head. "Not yet," she replied.

"Your show is the day after tomorrow, isn't it?" I asked.

"That's right," said Laura.

"Are you all prepared?" enquired Pam.

"I am now," smiled Laura. "This was the last piece, and the centre of my show."

"Great," said Pam. "Well, let's have something to eat, and we can talk about where we want to go tomorrow."

She made spaghetti bolognese, and we sat down at the dining table, occasionally looking over at Laura's now-uncovered canvas, picking out features we'd not noticed at first glance.

"How about something really simple tomorrow, like a long walk in the country with a stop at a pub?" suggested Pam.

"Sounds great," I said. Laura nodded.

"Settled, then," I said. "I'll look at the map and work out something not too strenuous, with somewhere to have lunch about half way."

We all went to bed early; Laura and I disappeared into our room, and Pam and Tim went into the master bedroom and shut the door.

We heard the sound of water running, and I whispered to Laura, "Didn't Pam promise Tim a surprise tonight?"

She raised her eyebrows, grinning.

In the morning Laura and I were ready early, in jeans, sweaters, and woolly hats, carrying our walking boots and a rucksack each. We had a quick breakfast, then all got in the car for the drive to the starting point of our walk. The day was cold, but clear, and when we left the car park the frosty grass crunched under our feet. We made good time, and the bar staff were only just putting out the menus when we arrived at the pub Tim had selected.

We had a good lunch and a couple of drinks each, and took the afternoon's walk at a slower pace to begin with. Our route took us through a wooded valley, and after a short while I said, "Oops, I really need to pee. I'll nip behind a bush. Uncle Tim, will you stay on the path and warn me if anyone comes?"

Laura and Pam walked on ahead, chatting, and I took a few steps off the path, going out of sight behind the bushes. I did what I needed to do, then I walked back to Tim, and glancing up the path to make sure Laura and Pam were out of sight, kissed him on the cheek.

We caught Pam and Laura up after a few minutes. "OK now?" asked Pam. "Definitely," I nodded.

When we reached the car, Laura and I were beginning to tire. "Bet you're bushed, Laura," Tim said.

She nodded. "In a good way, though. I enjoyed today, it took my mind off being nervous about the show."

Tim drove us home, and said, "OK, girls. When you're ready, here's some money to go out – you can tell us about the film when you get back."

We quickly changed, and set off for the cinema. We went in McDonalds for a quick burger, then into the cinema. We'd chosen a comedy, and we laughed till tears ran down our cheeks at the antics of John Candy and Steve Martin.

When we got back to the house, it was dark, and we crept carefully up the stairs to avoid disturbing Tim and Pam. We lay awake talking for a while, then drifted off to sleep.

Early the next morning Tim helped Laura get her picture into my car, and we set off to prepare for the show. By the time Tim and Pam joined us, we had everything in its place.

The space Laura had been assigned was perfect, and seeing her canvas hung on a gallery wall, looking at it from a distance, I realised afresh what a brilliant piece it was. Tim came and stood beside me.

"It makes me feel quite humble, knowing that there's at least something of me in that," I said.

My face fell. "Part of the point of the exhibition is for people to be able to buy the paintings," I said. "What if someone wants to buy Laura's picture?"

At that moment Laura arrived, looking absolutely in her element. She must have caught my words, because she grinned and said, "Don't worry about that. The picture is a gift to you and your uncle and aunt."

I realised what Laura was saying. Tears brimmed in my eyes, and I took Laura's hand, pressing my friend's fingers almost painfully. "Thanks, Laura," I whispered.

"Gosh, Laura, I don't know what to say," Tim managed.

"How about, 'Let me get you some lunch'?" she grinned. "The show's finished now, and I'll come back later to pack up. But we'll take the picture with us if that's OK – I can't wait to see it hanging at your place."

Tim looked around for Pam; she was admiring an abstract sculpture on the other side of the gallery. He waved her over and explained about the painting. She thanked Laura warmly.

"I'm going to treat us to lunch," Tim said.

"Great," Pam replied. "How about your favourite Italian place in town?"

A concerned look flashed across my face, but Tim grinned. "Perfect," he said.

We made sure the gallery would be secure, then carefully put Laura's picture in the boot and got in the car for the short drive into town. As Tim opened the door to the restaurant, Mario looked up and smiled broadly. He spoke briefly, and Tim grinned. "Three lovely signorinas today," he translated.