In The Janitor's Closet

Tucker Foley was, in a word, frustrated.

He was frustrated with his parents because they refused to get off his case about cutting his classes even though his grades hadn't dropped that much. He was frustrated with his teachers because he was absolutely sure the only thing they did at those stupid staff meetings was decide the best way to schedule every major test in the same week. He was frustrated with every stupid ghost who deemed it necessary to escape the ghost zone and attack that same week.

But most of all he was frustrated with his two best friends and their inexcusable inability to see how profoundly in love they were.

The final bell rang, but Tucker ignored it and leaned back against the shelf of cleaning supplies behind him, listening apathetically as the sound of footsteps echoed around him, rushing to leave for an entire two days of freedom. By the time Sam finished bandaging Danny, they would be able to leave without any chance of being spotted in the deserted hallway.

The trio was sitting in their favorite janitor's closet, the largest one in the whole school. It was mostly used for storage, but there were only ever a few extra boxes of supplies at any given time, leaving plenty of space for the group to use. Plus, the irregularity of its use made it easy for the group to hide their own supplies. It had come in handy more than once when Sam had needed extra medical supplies or Danny had needed a change of clothes.

Most students at Casper High didn't even know where all the janitor's closets were let alone have a favorite one. Then again, Tucker and his friends could hardly be compared to normal students.

"So how long do you think your powers will be shorted out?" Sam asked.

"Not sure," Danny rasped. Vlad seemed to take a particular pleasure in grabbing him by the throat and the halfa had the bruises to prove it. "Usually when he shocks me, it's just three hours. But he made some comment about improvements, so it might be longer. Then again, I don't really listen to the fruit loop during fights."

"Because he always taunts you?" she asked

"Because he's a fruit loop," Danny and Tucker chorused. Their response was an eye roll.

Suddenly hurried footsteps were heard, causing the trio to freeze and turn their eyes to the door. The footsteps slowed as they approached the closet door. With agility gained from helping Danny ghost hunt, Tucker leapt towards the door. He grabbed the knob and held it in place just as someone attempted to turn it. Tucker held it fast, making sure it didn't budge.

"Dang it," a familiar voice panted, "Locked."

"Empty classroom… next hallway," an accented voice panted back. Their footsteps faded as they rushed down the hall towards their destination. Silence reigned in the closet for several moments.

"Was that Dash…?" Danny started sounding disturbed.

"And Paulina…?" Sam added looking slightly sick.

"About to…?" Despite his dark skin tone, Tucker looked distinctly green.

Danny and Sam shuddered, looking around the closet and desperately hoping that it had never been defiled in such a manner. Their gazes caught and after staring at each other for a moment they both blushed and looked away. Tucker shook his head at them, his gaze once more drawn to the closet door. In an effort to avoid thinking about the awkward situation that had almost transpired, he once again looked elsewhere. A key ring on a hook next to the door caught his eye. He quickly derived that it was the key used to actually lock the door.

Turning to take in his friends, he saw that Sam had resumed her nursing and Danny was quietly watching her as she worked. His gaze moved back to the key, and as he glanced between it and the determinedly dense duo, a plan began to form in his mind.

"So, you're going to be out of commission for a while, Danny?" he asked. Danny simply nodded; most of his attention was on Sam as she bandaged a gash on his arm.

Tucker shook his head at his lovesick friend. "You done yet, Sam?" he asked

"Almost," the Goth replied. She'd started rubbing bruise cream onto the purple-and-black marks littering Danny's skin. Tucker counted how many she had left and realized he didn't have much time to put his plan into action.

"Can I see your cell, Sam? Yours too, Danny," he said.

"Can't it wait?" Sam asked. She would have preferred it if Danny didn't move until he had to.

"Nope," Tucker replied. She sighed and shifted away from her patient, reaching into the pocket of her black flare jeans to retrieve her phone. Danny gingerly shifted to reach into his own pocket and handed his phone to Sam so she could hand them both to Tucker. Neither argued; they knew their tech-savvy friend was always working on new upgrades.

Tucker quickly used one of the several technological devices he always carried around with him to connect Sam's phone to his PDA. Quickly, he downloaded all of her contacts, disconnected, and did the same with Danny's phone. Both lists had increased since freshman year, due to the clubs guidance counselors and parents had forced them to join.

When he'd finished downloading Danny's contact list, he handed the pair their phones and started walking backwards towards the closet door, inconspicuously grabbing the key off the hook.

"Done," Sam proclaimed, "Let me get you a shirt." Danny graced her with a smile as she stood and moved towards the pile of extra clothes they'd stored in a large, unlabeled box. He grabbed the shirt she tossed him, gingerly slipped it on, and carefully stood.

"Great," he said, "Let's go. I still have to get my stuff from…" He was interrupted by the sound of the closet door closing. The pair turned to look at the door with blank expressions. The moment they realized Tucker was gone, was the same moment they heard the key click in the lock.

Worried, and knowing it would be hard for Danny to move quickly, Sam rushed to the door. She twisted the knob, only to find that it was locked just as she'd suspected. Using both hands to jiggle the knob, though she knew it wouldn't open, she yelled, "Tucker! Are you there? Someone let us out of here!"

Danny, who'd made it to the door, pounded on it as strongly as he could. "Let us out!"

On the other side of the door, their tech-savvy friend whistled as he twirled the key ring around his finger before shoving it in his pocket. "Sorry, kiddies," he said, "I'm sick of you two dancing around each other. I'll be back to let you out in a couple of hours. Or you can get out when Danny gets his powers back. Whichever comes first."

For a moment there was silence; then as they comprehended that he was both fine and the person who'd locked them in, their voices returned in full force. He flat-out ignored their furious bellows as he made his way down the hallway. First he went to Danny's locker, and then Sam's, grabbing all the things he knew they'd need for the weekend. Then he went back to the hall with the janitor's closet. Making sure to be as quiet as possible, he sat against the lockers next to the door. He pulled out his PDA, double-checking to make sure it was on silent. He scrolled through the contacts he'd just acquired and picked out the names he needed. Carefully, he added each contact into his own phone before sending out a mass text.

Hey, it's Tucker. Sooo… I locked Danny and Sam in a closet. If they don't come out as a couple, I really don't have any other ideas. They have their phones so I would appreciate it if you ignored any pleas for help. Or encourage them to get together so I can let them out of there. ;)

Within minutes he had received a plethora of responses either complimenting him on his inventiveness or expressing hope that the infamous Casper High Lovebirds would finally get together. Tucker worried for a second, knowing that if this didn't work, nothing would, and the two would probably remain oblivious for the rest of their lives. Forcefully pushing those thoughts out of his mind, he settled down to wait.

Back inside the janitor's closet, Danny and Sam were nowhere near as calm. Well, Sam was nowhere near as calm.

She paced from the door to the back wall, quickly becoming frustrated because there really wasn't enough space for proper pacing. Danny was sitting leaning against the back wall, munching on a granola bar. He was somehow managing to ignore Sam as she muttered numerous death threats and continuously kicked the door with her steel toed boots.

Finally she whirled on Danny. "How can you be so calm?" she yelled. The halfa simply crumpled up his wrapper and rested his head against the wall behind him.

"First of all, I don't really have enough energy to be seriously angry right now." Sam was immediately contrite. Usually Danny had his ghost powers to keep him at least partially energized after a fight, but this time they'd been inhibited. She knew he'd been up since around 3:00 A.M. fighting ghosts and could only imagine the exhaustion he was feeling. "Second of all, we've all been friends for years. Tucker knows you well enough to know what you would do to him in retaliation for this stunt. He wouldn't have done this unless he was willing to risk going to a hospital. Since there's no way we could possibly know what he wants, I'm just going to wait until he figures out he has to tell us."

As if on cue their phones buzzed. Danny gave Sam a smug look, ignoring the eye roll she gave in return. However, his smug expression disappeared as soon as her read Tucker's text. He dragged his gaze away from the small screen to look at Sam, only to find utterly dismayed amethyst eyes staring back at him.

I'm sick of keeping secrets from my two best friends. I'm not letting you out until you can correctly text me the name of who Danny/Sam is in love with.

A/N: Hey guys! So this is my 6th story on this site, the first multi-chap. I've actually had it written out for about a month, but I was in school so I didn't have any time to type it up or edit it. Oh, the joys of summer vacation. Anyway, I hope you liked the first chapter. I'm looking for 10 reviews before I post the next one, so tell me what you think. :)