[b]September 4th, 8:35 a.m. [/b]

	As the door slowly opens, the high-pitched squeal of Nicki pierces the air. Linus stops in his tracks, the door not moving an inch further. 
	
	[i]If I go in there, then I will have to be in the middle of one of Nicki's blowouts, I would have to guess. I remember seeing one of her mannequins set up in the living room, so she is probably working on one of those "Big Ideas" that she has.[/i] Looking down at his flannel and pants which are covered with dirt and wet patches, Linus sighs slightly, slumping his shoulders a small amount. [i]And she would go ballistic on my clothes if she saw me like this. Maybe I should just...[/i]
	
	Linus' hand sneaks through the crack in the door, moving the grab his satchel that hangs on the rack next to the entryway. His fingers shake as they get close to the rack, and his tongue sticks out of the corner of his mouth in silent concentration. Finally, Linus' hand closes around the bag and unhooks it, quickly drawing it through the crack in the door as he closes it quietly. A cold gust of wind entering the room being the only major testament that the door was opened.

	Turning his back to the door, Linus slings his satchel over his shoulder diagonally across his chest and whistles as he walks away, fetching his book from the bench and heading towards the town as he reopens his page and becomes engulfed in his book.


[b]September 4th, 3 P.M.[/b]

	The air in the afternoon was not warmer, by any stretch of the imagination. Still, that didn't appear to bother Linus as he walked down the street. In fact, he appeared unaffected by what was going on around him as he pressed his nose to the book.
	
	[i]“There are times when the mind is dealt such a blow it hides itself in insanity. While this may not seem beneficial, it is. There are times when reality is nothing but pain, and to escape that pain the mind must leave reality behind.”  [/i]

	Linus' eyes darted over that passage again and again. It opened up an entirely new doorway of thought. What events happen that harm the mind to this extreme? Is there a way to recover from it? Would people around that person realize that they are next to an insane person? Am I insane? Are we all insane?

	The philosopher in him yearned for the answer and would not stop hunting for it, yet even now the biggest thing on his mind was that no answers were being found, only questions. [i]Maybe if I just sit down for a little an-[/i]

	Linus smashed into an object, knocking him flat on his back and knocking the air out of him. His hands do not go towards steadying his fall, and instead have a death-grip on his book. Once Linus stabilized on the ground he raised a hand to his head, dragging it down across his cheek in disbelief before opening his eyes.

	"Oh, h-h-hello, Max!"