The Gym, 4:37 P.M.

"You call that a punch?"

Work out clothes drenched in sweat, Archie turned around.

"You think you can do better?" Beside him, Atlanta laughed.

"Please. I could beat you any day."

"Let's see you try."

Atlanta smiled, taking a fighting stance and turning to face the old, worn punching bag in front of them. She looked so determined that Archie had to fight back a smile of his own.

No. He told himself. Act macho. Be macho.

The smile faded.

Atlanta swung, nearly knocking the punching bag right off of its stand as she did so. She turned to facing, breathing heavily.

"Told you so."

"Meh, I've seen better." Said Archie, trying to look unimpressed. But it was hard, Atlanta was getting better everyday.

"Whatever." Atlanta made to leave, but turned around as she reached the door. "Hey, listen. I need to pick up a couple things downtown later on, and I thought maybe you'd like to come along. We could get pizza."

"Sure." Archie responded. "Anything for pizza."

He waited until Atlanta was safely out of earshot, then muttered;

"Anything for you."

Atlanta's Dorm, 5:42 P.M.

"You asked Archie to the MALL?" Cried Teresa, trying not to laugh.

Needless to say, it wasn't working.

"Yeah. So?" Atlanta flopped down on her bed beside her best friend. Teresa had just come to Atlanta's dorm to borrow a hairbrush, but when she had heard the news, she'd had to stay.

"Sounds like a date to me."

"It is not!" Atlanta replied, indignantly.

"Does Archie think it is?"

Atlanta mulled it over for a moment.

"I doubt it. At least- he'd better not." She paused. "Oh, man. What if he does think it's a date? What do I do?" Atlanta leapt off her bed and began pacing nervously around the room.

"Well, do you like him?"

"Yes! I mean, no! Well, as a friend, but…"

Teresa laughed.

"Calm down! You sound like my dad on one of his 'busy days.' Not a flattering comparison, let me tell you. Just…look at it this way. Archie said yes, right?"

"Right…"

"So he's cool with whatever you're doing. What's the problem?"

Atlanta sighed.

"It's just…I want him to be a boy who's my friend. Not my boyfriend."

Teresa looked at Atlanta, trying to make sense of what had just been said. After a long pause, she replied.

"How about you just…go. You know, see what happens. From what I've seen of Archie so far, one trip to the mall won't make him all sappy."

"You're probably right. Thanks." Atlanta got up and left the room. Teresa smiled for a moment, lost in thought, but jerked back to her senses a moment later.

"Atlanta!" She called. "About that hairbrush…"

Atlanta stuck her head back into the room.

"Right. Sorry…" She tossed a small wooden object to Teresa and disappeared into the hallways once more. Teresa caught it and left the room, humming a tune that sounded suspiciously like;

"Atlanta and Archie, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G."