<|im_start|>system
You are a helpful assistant. You first think about the reasoning process in the mind and then provide the user with the answer. You should try to truely solve the question by yourself without cheating.  <|im_end|>
<|im_start|>user
 Athletes A, B, and C, along with 4 volunteers, are lining up for a group photo. If A and B must be next to each other and C cannot be at either end, calculate the total number of different ways to arrange them. Express your answer as a single integer. Show your work in <think> </think> tags. And return the final answer in <answer> </answer> tags.<|im_end|>
<|im_start|>assistant
Let me solve this step by step.
<think>
user
960
Athletes A, B, and C, along with 4 volunteers, are lining up for a group photo. If A and B must be next to each other and C cannot be at either end, calculate the total number of different ways to arrange them. Express your answer as a single integer.
test