I made sure the gym teachers, Coach K and Coach Merrill (but especially Coach K), were nowhere in site as I followed Douchezilla behind the bleachers. I could see all of my friends giving me a "WTF" look as they watched us from the track, but I pretended not to see them.

"A shed?" I said as we arrived in front of the decent-sized storage unit that held all the equipment responsible for keeping the fields looking as prim and proper as our school's reputation. "You brought me to a shed?"

"It's not just a shed," Douchezilla said. "It's the place I go to when I need to be alone. My secret hiding spot if you will."

"How can it be a secret when the janitors take stuff out of here all the time?" I asked.

"Trust me, there are some places in this baby that the janitors don't even go near," he said, patting the side of the shed.

"Oh really?" I raised an eyebrow. "Like where?"

"Like I said, it's a secret." Douchezilla smirked. "Maybe one day you'll be lucky enough to see for yourself."

"Was that supposed to be your attempt at being romantic or something?"

"No, I'm only romantic with a girl inside the shed," he said "We aren't at that level yet."

"Yet?" I rolled my eyes. "You are unbelievable."

"So I've been told," he said.

"So other than to show me your 'secret hiding spot,' why'd you bring me back here?" I asked. "To smoke? To drink?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What? No ... although I have a bottle of brandy hidden behind the old lawn mower if you want some to get a little loose."

I glared at him. "I don't drink," I said coldly. "And neither should you."

"It was a joke," he said.

"Ooh ..." That made me feel a little stupid. "Well it wasn't a very funny one."

"C'mon Pidge, you gotta lighten up a little bit. Do you really think I brought you back here during gym class to drink when you obviously still have to go back into the locker room to change?"

"Well ... I don't know—you never know."

"Well relax, because that's not why I brought you back here."

"Then, why did you?"

"Because like I said, this is where I like to come when I need to be alone, when I need a break from everything and everyone."

"You mean where you go to skip class," I corrected. "Other than the second floor water fountain, of course."

"Ouch, Pidge. That hurt," Douchezilla said, dramatically clutching his heart over his shirt. "You know, I'm really not the bad guy that you think I am."

"I never said you were a bad guy," I said. "Annoying maybe, but not bad."

"Okay fine. I'm really not the 'annoying' guy you think I am."

"Oh no?"

"No."

"Well I beg to differ."

Douchezilla slowly started stepping towards me. "Well what will it take for you to change your mind?"

As he moved towards me, I wanted to back up—at least I thought did—but I didn't. "Uhhh ..." I blubbered like an idiot. The only possible explanation I could give myself for not backing up was that his hotness made me frozen in my tracks. I know how ridiculous that sounded, but what else could it have been? Him hot, me frozen—it was actually kind of ironic once I thought about it.

"Penelope Kherrington," a familiar male voice barked from behind me, causing me to tense up.

Uh oh.

If Douchezilla's attempt to put the moves on me didn't get my heart racing at a thousand beats per second, the harsh sound of my name certainly did. It was nice to know that my heart was still beating though, because in a moment I was gonna be dead if anyone over the age of twenty-five with the last name "Kherrington" was standing behind me.

'Please don't be Cooper, please don't be Cooper,' I thought to myself as I slowly turned around to see whom the familiar voice belonged to. My eyes went wide at whom it was.

"Jerry!" I said with excitement as I saw one of the school janitors standing there.

"Get on over here and give me a hug, lucky Penny," Jerry said. I quickly went and gave the big teddy-bear-of-a-man a bear hug. Jerry the Janitor and I went way back. Back when I was younger, we used to hang out together in the hallways when I had to wait at the school for my brothers to finish their work (before they trusted me to be home alone). I remember he used to let me help him sweep and mop the floors or vacuum the carpets, but my favorite memory was when he would polish the floors and then let me slide across them in just my socks (as long as my brothers weren't around).

"Why, I haven't see you at all this year," Jerry said. "And here I thought I'd be seeing more of you once you were an actual student in this place."

"I know, long time no see," I said. "I've been busy trying to keep up with all the school work and stuff."

"I hear you," Jerry said. "I've always thought that they work you kids way too hard—"

"Ha, I'd love for you to tell that to my brothers," I said.

"Still, that isn't a reason for not paying me a visit every once in a while," he said. "You know where my 'office' is."

"The janitor's closet on the second floor—I know, I know," I said. "I'm sorry. I'll try to stop by and say hi more often, when I can."

"That's all I ask," Jerry said with a satisfactory nod. I wouldn't call him a lonely fellow by any means, but after his wife divorced him a couple years ago and took his former step-kids (who he'd raised from toddlers) with her, well, he'd definitely been putting in a lot of extra hours at the academy.

"What are you doing back here where I keep my garden tools?" Jerry asked. "Not skipping I hope."

"Nah, I'm just taking a breather from gym class with a friend of mine," I said. "And we were just about to go back."

"Friend?" Jerry gave Douchezilla the once over. "And who do we have here?"

"Zach Oliver," Douchezilla said as he extended his hand for Jerry to shake. I could tell that he was trying not to let Jerry's large stature intimidate him.

"Zach Oliver, huh?" Jerry said as he suspiciously accepted his handshake. I almost said the same thing—I finally knew Douchezilla's actual name.

"I'm surprised you two haven't met before," I said to Douch—I mean Zach. "Given how much you like to hang out on the second floor."

Jerry looked at me. "I think you can do better, lucky Penny."

"What?" I asked as Jerry then looked back at Zach.

"I mean he's good looking, and you two make a cute couple together, but I don't think he's your type," Jerry said.

My eyes widened. "Oh, no, Jerry, see," I said frantically. "It's not like that at all. We're just—"

"Like she said before, I'm a friend," Zach said as he let go of Jerry's hand.

"Well then I guess that makes two of us," Jerry said, eyeing Zach.

"Do you really know this guy?" Zach asked me as if Jerry wasn't standing right there.

"Yeah, we've been friends for years," I said. "He's cool, one of the only cool staff members at this school."

"C'mon now, lucky Penny, that's not true," Jerry said. "Why, your brothers are some of the coolest guys I've ever come across at this here school. Especially Cooper—I can't count how many times he's offered to help me mow the lawn during his free time."

"Cooper?" Zach said.

"Coach K," I clarified.

Zach's eyes widened. "Coach K is your brother?"

"Yeah," I said. "You didn't know that?"

Zach started gaping like a fish.

"That looks like a no," Jerry said.

"Well then surprise," I said. "Three of my brothers are teachers here."

Zach still didn't say anything.

"Well you two better get out of here before one of those brothers thinks you're skipping," Jerry said, before shooing us away. "I better see you around, lucky Penny."

"You will Jerry, bye," I said as Jerry disappeared inside the shed. Zach and I then started walking back towards the track. I had no idea what time it was—I never wore a watch, and I normally had my cell phone on me but someone still had it (yeah, I was still bitter that Dana hadn't given it back yet). My fingers were crossed that class hadn't ended yet.

"You aren't gonna tell your brother what I told you, are you?" Zach finally said as we approached the bleachers.

"What, about your secret hiding spot?" I asked.

"No, about the forged note."

"Nah," I said. "I have more important things to worry about, and they don't involve getting you in trouble."

"Thanks," he said. "To show you how much I appreciate you not ratting me out, I'm gonna help you with your brothers situation."

I rolled my eyes and sighed. This guy just wouldn't give up. "Fine. How exactly do you plan on helping me?"

"Just trust me."

Honestly, he was probably one of the last people I trusted. But then again, what choice did I have if I wanted things to get better with my brothers? I guess there was the option of me just putting on my big girl panties and talking to them man-to-man ... or rather, man-to-girl ... but that almost always ended up with me being in more trouble because I often found it hard to contain my emotions (which were mostly anger and frustration after having a discussion with my brothers).

"Why are you being so nice and helpful?" I asked him as the school's Tartan track came back into view.

"Because, like I alluded to before, I'm more than the guy you met by the water fountain that first day," Zach said.

"Okay, if you say so."

"And also because I want us to be even so that you can't hold the whole forged note thing over my head."

I rolled my eyes. "That sounds like a more accurate reason coming from you."

"Penelope! Zachary!" a stern voice shouted from across the track. I cringed at hearing my name harshly called out for the second time in one class period, but at least I was in good company this time with Zach. This time, however, I had no doubt as to whom that voice belonged to as I saw Cooper storming towards us. Uh oh.