He splashes cold water on his face, and for once, he doesn't flinch. The water is no less than freezing, definitely less than zero degrees, and he just watches motionlessly as it drips off of his face. He wonders momentarily when he became this numb, and then picks up his razor and continues shaving.

As he reaches the elevator of his apartment building, he briefly smiles at the attendant waiting. He's a kind-looking grandfather type, and he gives Elliot a warm smile in return, bearing two rows of worn, jagged teeth. Serrated lines of wrinkles appear when he grins, a testament to years of existence. Elliot feels that he had that many wrinkles at thirty. As they descend to the lobby, Elliot leans back against the railing and the attendant stares awkwardly at the buttons, as if he is willing the elevator to reach the first floor. The man looks vaguely familiar, and Elliot wonders if he is grandfather of one of his children's friends. Just seeing this man lifts his spirits a little higher; coming across one genuine person in New York City once a decade can be a rare occurrence. He sees a fleeting picture of this man at Christmastime, giving his grandchild a perfectly wrapped box, bow intact, and watching, with this same grin, as the child lights up the room with his smile. The warmth from the child's smile gives Elliot a transitory surge of something that isn't cold.

When he gets off the elevator, Elliot buys a newspaper from the local news stand in the lobby. On the front page, he sees an update on a rape case that he was investigating. It's a child rapist who was found innocent due to circumstantial evidence. All of a sudden, Elliot finds himself back in the courtroom, watching as a man who stole the innocence of five children rejoices with his family as he makes his narrow escape from justice. His mother and father give him warm hugs, and his father pulls back to reveal serrated lines of wrinkles, and abruptly, Elliot feels ice course through his veins. He was the supportive father of a child rapist, not a kind grandfather. When he walks outside into the frigid December weather, Elliot shivers.

As he's walking to the train station, Elliot makes a mental note not to look at any other passengers on the train, and avoid any form of social interaction whatsoever. When he gets off the train and steps outside, he feels nothing.