Him

 

The man woke up at precisely dawn. He got out of his bed and dressed in his clean, white clothes. He went downstairs to the dining room of the boarding house he lived in exactly 15 minutes later, after washing his face and brushing his teeth exactly 35 times in each direction.

He ate a meal consisting of exact proportions, calculated for maximum efficiency of digestion and nutrition. He spoke genially to all in the dining room, saying exactly what would be expected in his situation, nothing more or less.

After exactly 25 minutes he returned to his room. He read the correspondence he had received that morning from his colleagues and replied to each one meticulously and methodically. Exactly one hour later he stopped and began reading journals. After another hour he stood up, put on his jacket, and left the boarding house.

He walked down the street at a steady pace. At various points he stopped and spoke quickly to individuals and handed them pieces of the correspondence he had written earlier that day. Exactly 45 minutes later he arrived at his laboratory, which contained nothing at all except a single mattress.

The man settled onto the mattress and laid back.

Exactly 15 minutes later, he began to dream.