Zack had slept a little later than he'd planned. He'd spent the whole night trying to come up with a way to cheer Kelly up and hadn't fallen asleep until three in the morning. He had to do something special. He had to do something great. He had no idea what he was going to do. He threw off his covers and sat up in bed. Leaning his arms onto his knees, he rushed his hands through his hair in frustration.

Suddenly, it hit him. He could babysit. That way, Kelly and her parents could go somewhere special to celebrate her graduation. How hard could it be?

Zack reached for his phone and called the Kapowski house. It rang twice before a tiny voice answered. "Hewwo. Kapowski residins. May I ask who's cawing?" Kelly's little brother, Billy, answered.

"Hey, Billy! This is Zack!" Zack replied with a little too much excitement in his voice.

"You wanna tawk to Kewwy?"

"No, I don't want to talk to Kew—I mean, Kelly. I'd like to speak to your mom or dad. Are they home?"

***

"Kelly? Honey?" Frank, Kelly's mild mannered father, asked as he knocked on her door.

Kelly, who was lying on her bed writing in her diary, looked up at the door. "Yes, Daddy? Come in." She sat up crossed legged on her bed closing her diary. She watched as her father walked in smiling and swinging his arms. He was dressed in dark blue dress pants, a button up shirt, and a blazer. Kelly tilted her head and smiled at him. "Why are you so dressed up?"

"Well, your mother and I thought we'd go out," Frank said slowly.

Oh great. I'm going to have to babysit. The smile began to fade from Kelly's face. Bracing herself for what he was about to ask her to do, she hugged her knees to her chest.

Her father brought his hands together in front of him and continued, "We thought we'd go somewhere nice, not too stuffy of a place, but somewhere that would send the message that this is a special occasion," he paused for a moment, "and we were wondering if you wanted to go with us."

Kelly stared at her father through puzzled eyes. Then, she turned her head a little and narrowed her eyes, "Wait a second. You want me to go too? Who's going to watch everyone else? Nicky? You do remember that you vowed never to let her babysit again after she caught the stove top on fire and put it out with Billy's favorite stuffed animal?" she remind him with a half smile.

"How could I forget? Billy cried about it for a month. Your mother and I are keeping are word. Nicky isn't babysitting. Someone else volunteered to babysit while we went out and celebrated with our graduate." He turned toward the door. "So if you'd like to go to the Sizzler," he didn't finish his sentence before Kelly interrupted.

"The Sizzler! You made reservations to the Sizzler! Oh, wow!" she jumped up off the bed in excitement and ran in front of her father and hugged him.

"Six o'clock sharp," he told her and put his finger to her nose.

Kelly giggled. "I'd better change then! I can't go to the Sizzler like this!" She felt of her hair which had been thrown into a messy ponytail. As much as she loved her Bayside sweatshirt and leggings, neither were the right choice for the outing. She started toward her closet when it curiosity struck. "Wait a minute. Someone volunteered to babysit the Kapowski kids. How did you find anyone crazy enough to do that?" She asked suspiciously.

Her father shrugged, then, pointed to the door. Kelly turned her head to see Zack leaning against the door with his hands in his pockets grinning from ear to ear. Her lips slowly curved into a smile as she took in the sight of him. He was wearing torn jeans and an old cross country t-shirt as if he was thought, after tonight, he'd never be able to wear his outfit again. He was probably right.

"Call me crazy," he shrugged, "but I think you deserve a night out." Kelly bit her lip, shyly looked down at her hands, then back at Zack.

"Well, I'm going to finish getting ready," Kelly's father said slipping out the door giving Zack a pat on the shoulder.

"You look like you're ready for war," Kelly giggled as she folded her hands behind her back, leaning forward a little.

Zack threw out his arms and looked down at his clothes. "Well, I have heard about the Kapowski kids from a pretty reliable source."

"They're not all that bad," Kelly defended playfully, lifting her chin in mock defiance.

"Oh, really? I've heard they have a tendency to lock babysitters in closets," he said taking a step closer.

"Ugly rumor," Kelly replied taking a step toward him.

"I've heard they've invited the Jr. High softball team over for indoor practice," he told her taking another step toward her.

"Vicious lies," Kelly stated taking a step closer.

"Ok," Zack paused in thought. Then, he waved one finger. "What about forgetting about a grilled cheese sandwich and starting a small kitchen fire?" he stepped toward her again. Toe to toe, he leaned toward her smiling cockily, his face just inches from hers.

"Well…" Kelly hesitated unable to think of a countering response.

"Ah ha," Zack grinned, "so they are that bad." He playfully poked her nose.

Kelly looked up at him and smiled. "I can't believe you're going to all this trouble for me, Zack."

"Well, you're worth it Kelly. Nothing makes me happier than seeing you happy," he whispered as he took her hand in his. Kelly's smile started to fade into a more serious expression. "You aren't going to cry are you?" he joked, lightening the mood. She chuckled and shook her head.

"Maybe you're right. The Kapowski kids aren't ALL that bad," he lifted her chin up with his other hand and looked into her eyes. "I'm looking at the best one." He leaned toward her. She leaned in too, as their lips slowly met. Their kiss let him know that the tension he had caused between them on the last day of school had been completely erased. Zack traced his finger down her cheek and smiled at her. "I'd better let you get ready," he headed toward the door, and shut it slowly behind him looking back at her.

Kelly sighed. As Kelly slipped on her dress and fixed her hair, she felt happier than she had in days. But in the back of her mind was a nagging, sad thought. She knew she had the best boyfriend a girl could ever want, and at the end of the summer she would have to let him go. Remembering the pact she made with her friends, she pushed that thought from her mind, quickly applied her make-up, grabbed her flats and headed down the stairs.

She peeked into the kitchen and saw her mother giving Zack babysitter orientation. She was showing him the list of emergency numbers on the refrigerator. Zack, of course, already knew everything her mother was telling him. He had been over to Kelly's house several times and had even helped her babysit a time or two, yet he politely listened and acted as if he'd never heard or seen these things in his life.

Her mother moved over to the cabinets to show him where all the snacks were located, Zack turned to follow her. He glanced over at Kelly who was sliding her shoes on, then, did a double take. His mouthed dropped slightly as he watched her toss her long brown hair over her shoulder. She was dressed in an orange tank dress with white flowers—the same one she had worn to Johnny Dakota's party. At the time, Zack hadn't allowed himself to dwell on how beautiful she looked in it, but today he let himself be wowed.

"The animal crackers are here," Kelly's mother continued swinging open the bottom cabinet door and pointed. She looked up to find Zack gazing in Kelly's direction, then, put her hands on her hips and shook her head.

"Uh huh," Zack replied not looking in her direction. "The animal crackers are in the bottom left cabinet." Hearing his correct reply, Mrs. Kapowski shrugged and began to continue instructing Zack. Just then, Mr. Kapowski came into the kitchen adjusting his blazer.

"Well, are we ready to go?" he asked wrapping an arm around Kelly. She smiled and nodded.

"Yes, Frank. I was just showing Zack a few things before we left," Mrs. Kapowski replied.

"I'm sure he can handle it, can't you, Zack?" Frank grinned at him as he and Kelly started toward the door.

"Yes, sir. I sure can," Zack replied confidently.

Mrs. Kapowski followed saying goodbye to Billy, Kyle, and Nicky. Then, she grabbed Zack's hand and began listing further directions as she started out the door.

"Make sure Billy eats his vegetables. Don't let Nicky stay on the phone for more than an hour. Make sure Kyle feeds his gerbil. Oh, and Billy must be in bed by—"

"Mom, he'll be fine! He knows all of this," Kelly assured her.

"Let's go, honey!" Mr. Kapowski grabbed her arm and pulled her out the door.

Zack leaned on the door frame and waved goodbye. Kelly waved back as she got into the back seat. He closed the front door and turned to find Billy, Kyle, and Nicky all sitting calmly on the couch. This isn't going to be so bad.

***