Fic: The Sharpest Edges (Part 2)
Title: The Sharpest Edges (Part 2)
Author: Mary (stillxmyxheart)
Beta: Lindsay (rowofstars)
Rating: R (domestic violence)
Genre: AU, Angst, Drama, Friendship, Family
Word Count: 2,590
Characters/Pairings: Hannah, Seth, Kari, Eli, David, mentions of Juliet (Hannah/Seth, references to David/Juliet)
A/N: After braintwin wrote her thing, I really felt the need to fill in the gaps, and killing Seth on paper was extremely satisfying.
Hannah jumps and gasps when she hears the front door bang open, tears instantly rising in her eyes as she clutches the clothes in her hand. She should've been gone by now, but it had taken hours to get up the courage to finally do what she needed to do, and now it might be too late.
Hands trembling, heart in her throat, she shoves the clothes into her bag, just as the bedroom door opens. She doesn't turn, too scared to look at him, but she feels him there, his eyes boring into her back.
"What the hell are you doing?" he finally says.
The shaking of her hands has moved to her entire body, and she swallows hard before she whispers, "I'm leaving."
"What was that?" he says, a little louder, moving to stand beside her.
He towers over her, and she shies away from him, reminded yet again of how much bigger he is.
"I said -" Her voice leaves her momentarily, and she takes a deep breath, edging away from him. "I said I'm leaving."
"Oh, you're leaving, huh. Where the fuck are you gonna go? Nobody wants you."
"That's - that's not true." Her fingers are on the strap of her bag, and as she moves back, it moves with her, revealing Eli's card on the bed. It's well worn from holding it and staring at it ever since he gave it to her, trying to find courage in a little paper rectangle given to her by a kind man, and her heart sinks when Seth picks it up.
"Who the fuck is Eli Shaw? Are you leaving me for this prick? Some other guy whose dick you won't suck?"
"N - no," Hannah breathes. "I'm just - I'm leaving. It - it's over, Seth. I d - deserve better -" She doesn't even know if she really believes that anymore, but maybe saying it out loud will help convince her that it's true.
"You don't deserve anything," Seth snaps, flicking Eli's card back onto the bed. "You're worthless. Your dad doesn't even want you anymore. You're lucky I let you stay here, because without me, you'd be on the street."
Hannah shakes her head, taking another step back. "Stop it. Stop it. It's over."
"It's only over when I fucking say it's over!" he shouts, snatching the bag from her and throwing it across the room.
"N - no," she whimpers, backing away from him. "Please, just -"
She cries out when he hits her, her already bruised cheek stinging from the blow, and then he grabs her arm, yanking her to him.
"You are the biggest waste of space," he hisses, close to her face. "You're not good enough for anybody. Nobody wants you, nobody cares about you, why bother pretending that they do?"
"Let me go," she sobs, trying to pull away from him. "Please, just let me go."
He shoves her away from him, making her stumble and fall to her knees, and before she can stand, he stalks over to her and wraps his hand around her neck, pulling her to her feet and then shoving her against the wall.
She gasps when he squeezes, her hands coming up to claw at his arm as she struggles to breathe, and he just smirks.
"I fucking own you, Hannah. You'll never do any better than me, because you're fucking worthless."
Panic is beginning to seize her heart, and out of desperation, she brings her knee up, hitting him right between the legs. He howls in pain and lets her go, stumbling back as he doubles over. She slumps against the wall, coughing as she lifts her hand to her neck, and then feels fear again when he looks up at her, rage on his face.
"You little bitch," he says, his voice low and dangerous, and she spins to dart through the bedroom door, hurrying towards the kitchen. She hears him coming after her, but there's courage bubbling up inside of her, Eli's kind eyes flashing through her mind, and she knows she can't do this anymore.
She yanks open the knife drawer and pulls out the butcher knife just as he slams into her from behind, pushing her forward and smashing her arm against a glass on the counter.
The glass shatters, and she cries out as the shards slice into her arm, smearing blood on the counter.
"Get off of me!" she shrieks, bracing against the counter and pushing back.
It forces him away enough for her to turn around, and he starts to come at her again, and then stops suddenly. His eyes widen, and there's a weird pressure on her hand.
Confused, she looks down, and then her eyes widen too when she sees the butcher knife buried in his stomach, right to the hilt.
He staggers back, his hands closing around the knife, and Hannah almost tells him to stop as he pulls the knife out, knowing he has a better chance of surviving if he leaves it in, but the words don't come out.
"Call -" he gasps, his hands pressed against his stomach, blood seeping through his fingers. "Call 911."
She doesn't move, can't move. Her feet feel like they're rooted to the spot, and she watches as he falls to the floor, her fingers tightly gripping the edge of the counter.
"Help me," he wheezes, still clutching his stomach as he rolls onto his side. Blood begins to drip onto the floor, and still she can't move. The only man she's ever loved is dying right in front of her, and she can't move to do a damn thing about it.
It takes several minutes for it to be over, and then finally, he stops moving, stops breathing, his gaze fixed and staring (but not at her, and some small part of her is grateful, because she thinks she'd lose it right then and there if he was looking at her), and she presses her lips together as tears fill her eyes.
"Seth?" Her voice is a whisper, wavering on the word, and her knees feel weak. "Seth?"
There's no response except for heavy silence, and she sinks slowly to the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry," she gasps. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean -"
She trails off as she starts to sob, each harsh breath making her aching throat hurt even more. Guilt and relief fight for attention inside of her, and the relief makes her feel even guiltier, but she can't stop thinking that it's over, it's finally over. She's free.
She doesn't know how long she sits there, staring at Seth's body and crying so hard she starts to feel sick, but at some point she hears footsteps, and a soft voice saying her name.
Tearing her gaze from Seth, she looks up to see their next door neighbor, Kari, standing in the kitchen, staring at the scene in front of her. Her gaze lands on Hannah, and she moves towards her, gingerly stepping around Seth's body and the pool of blood that's spread across the floor.
"C'mon, honey," she murmurs, kneeling down and placing her hand under Hannah's elbow. "You don't need to be in here."
Hannah allows the other woman to pull her to her feet, and they walk from the kitchen into the living room. Kari lifts Hannah's arm to peer at the cuts, and then leads Hannah into the bathroom. She cleans Hannah's arm carefully before wrapping a towel around the worst of the cuts and elevating her arm.
"How do you feel?" Kari asks quietly. "Light headed?"
Hannah shakes her head vaguely, glancing at her arm before looking back at Kari.
"I didn't mean to do it," she whispers.
"I know, honey," Kari replies softly. "I know."
A few hours later, Hannah is sitting on a bed in the ER. Her foot jiggles anxiously, but for the most part, she doesn't know how to process anything that happened tonight, so her mind just feels blank.
She looks up at the sound of approaching footsteps, and a beat later the curtain is drawn back, revealing Eli.
They stare at each other for a long moment, and she tries to read his expression, tries to see if he's angry with her, if he blames her, if everything is really her fault.
But all she sees is concern, and the moment hangs suspended before he finally asks, "Are you okay?"
It's obvious that she isn't, but she knows he's not asking about her physical injuries, and she shakes her head, tears welling in her eyes as her chin quivers. He moves closer to her until he's standing right in front of her, and there's a brief moment of hesitation before she leans forward and slides her arms around his neck.
He holds her as she cries, his arms tight around her slender frame, too slender, it seems, hidden under her baggy sweater, but he's not here to judge. He knows why she called him, why he was the first person she thought of before anybody else, and he's going to give her what she needs.
They stay like that for a long time, even after her tears subside, her chin resting on his shoulder and her cheek just touching his ear. When they finally pull apart, her eyes are red and puffy, and she looks drained and exhausted. He wonders if tonight - or more likely tomorrow night - will be the first night that her sleep is restful.
But right now, he just smiles at her, and she stares solemnly back, sniffling as her hands slide down his arms.
"Was I stupid for loving him?" she whispers.
"No," Eli murmurs, shaking his head.
She holds his gaze a moment, and then ducks her head, sniffling again as she swipes her hands over her cheeks. He moves to grab the box of tissues on the rolling table and hands her one, smiling again at her mumbled thanks.
"I don't know what to do," she says finally. "I can't go back - there. Not tonight, at least. And my dad -"
"Call him," Eli says quietly.
"I can't. I've barely spoken to him in so long, he probably hates me now." Her chin quivers again at that, and Eli dips his head to meet her eyes.
"I have a feeling he doesn't. Just call him. I'll stay with you until he gets here."
Hannah looks up at him, holding his gaze for a moment before she nods and picks up her phone from the bed. She finds the contact entry for her dad, and takes a breath before tapping the screen to call him.
It's late, and she's not sure if he'll answer, but after a few rings, his sleepy voice comes on the line.
"Dad?" Hannah says softly. "It's - it's me."
"Han?" He instantly sounds more alert, and she closes her eyes. "What is it, what's wrong?"
"I need you to come get me."
"Where are you?"
"At the hospital," she says in a small voice. "In the ER."
"Okay, I'm on my way."
Hannah takes a breath as she lowers her phone, and glances at Eli before looking down again.
"He's on his way."
Eli nods, and Hannah continues to stare at her phone. She wants to believe that her dad sounded glad to hear from her, sounded genuinely concerned for her, but she can't tell. She doesn't know how he could be worried about her after everything she's done.
A short while later, she looks up at the sound of rapid footsteps, and sees her dad approaching the nurses' station before he looks over and spots her.
"Hannah," he breathes, hurrying over to her.
"Dad -" she starts, but before she can say anything else, he's hugging her tightly. She starts to cry, clinging to him as she hides her face against his shoulder, and he pulls back after a few minutes, taking her face in his hands. His expression is anguished as his eyes flick over the bruises on her face, the marks on her neck, the bandage on her arm, and he looks at her again, tears in his eyes.
"Baby, what did he do to you?"
"I'm so sorry, Daddy," Hannah sobs.
"Shh, baby, shh," David murmurs, stroking her hair as he leans forward to kiss her forehead. "It's not your fault."
"I did something terrible, though -"
"No, you didn't -"
"Yes," she insists, and he pulls back to look at her again, intently studying her face.
"What happened?" he finally asks.
"I killed him," she whispers. David's eyes widen, and she shakes her head. "I tried to leave, and he started to hurt me again, and I grabbed the knife, but I didn't mean to do it, I just wanted to scare him, but - but he came at me, and it just - happened." She sniffles, tears rapidly filling her eyes again. "I'm sorry, Daddy, I'm so sorry."
"It's okay, baby," David says softly, pushing her hair behind her ear. "You had no choice. It was self defense, and you didn't do anything wrong. It's okay."
"You're not mad at me?"
"Of course not. I'm just glad you're okay."
She bites down on her lip as she looks at him, tears still sliding down her cheeks, and then asks in a small, almost childlike voice, "Do you still love me?"
"More than anything in the world," he replies instantly, pulling her into another hug as she begins to cry in earnest again.
He holds her for a long moment, stroking her hair and rubbing her back, and she sniffles when they pull apart, reaching for a fresh tissue.
"Where's Jules?" she asks.
"At home, making up your bed. I figured if you were calling me, it was because you wanted to come home."
Hannah nods, almost smiling, and then sniffles again. "I'm sorry, Daddy. For everything."
"I know. It's okay. We can talk about things tomorrow, but right now, we need to get you home and cleaned up, and then you need to get some sleep."
Hannah nods, and David steps back so she can slide off the bed. She bends to pick up her bag from the floor, and it's then that he notices Eli.
"Who's this?" he asks, frowning.
"Oh, that's Eli, he's my - um -"
"I'm a friend." Eli extends his hand. "Eli Shaw."
David introduces himself, and frowns again. "You have an official look to you, are you a cop?"
"FBI, actually." David's frown deepens, and Eli shakes his head as he adds quickly, "Not here officially. Just as a friend, like I said."
"I'm guessing it is okay for her to leave, right?"
"Yeah, the police brought her here, but only for medical treatment. Clear cut self defense, she's not under arrest for anything. You can take her home."
David nods, turning to look at Hannah again. "Ready to go?"
She nods, and then looks at Eli.
"Thank you," she says softly. "For everything."
"Don't mention it," Eli replies with a small smile.
Hannah bites down on her lip, and then raises her eyebrows. "Can - can I call you again? You know... as a friend?"
"Yeah," Eli says, his smile widening. "Yeah, definitely."
"Okay," Hannah says, and she smiles for the first time all night. "Then I'll talk to you later."
Eli nods, still smiling, and David gives him a brief nod before sliding his arm around Hannah's shoulders, pressing a kiss to the side of her head as they start towards the exit.
Author: Mary (stillxmyxheart)
Beta: Lindsay (rowofstars)
Rating: R (domestic violence)
Genre: AU, Angst, Drama, Friendship, Family
Word Count: 2,590
Characters/Pairings: Hannah, Seth, Kari, Eli, David, mentions of Juliet (Hannah/Seth, references to David/Juliet)
A/N: After braintwin wrote her thing, I really felt the need to fill in the gaps, and killing Seth on paper was extremely satisfying.
Hannah jumps and gasps when she hears the front door bang open, tears instantly rising in her eyes as she clutches the clothes in her hand. She should've been gone by now, but it had taken hours to get up the courage to finally do what she needed to do, and now it might be too late.
Hands trembling, heart in her throat, she shoves the clothes into her bag, just as the bedroom door opens. She doesn't turn, too scared to look at him, but she feels him there, his eyes boring into her back.
"What the hell are you doing?" he finally says.
The shaking of her hands has moved to her entire body, and she swallows hard before she whispers, "I'm leaving."
"What was that?" he says, a little louder, moving to stand beside her.
He towers over her, and she shies away from him, reminded yet again of how much bigger he is.
"I said -" Her voice leaves her momentarily, and she takes a deep breath, edging away from him. "I said I'm leaving."
"Oh, you're leaving, huh. Where the fuck are you gonna go? Nobody wants you."
"That's - that's not true." Her fingers are on the strap of her bag, and as she moves back, it moves with her, revealing Eli's card on the bed. It's well worn from holding it and staring at it ever since he gave it to her, trying to find courage in a little paper rectangle given to her by a kind man, and her heart sinks when Seth picks it up.
"Who the fuck is Eli Shaw? Are you leaving me for this prick? Some other guy whose dick you won't suck?"
"N - no," Hannah breathes. "I'm just - I'm leaving. It - it's over, Seth. I d - deserve better -" She doesn't even know if she really believes that anymore, but maybe saying it out loud will help convince her that it's true.
"You don't deserve anything," Seth snaps, flicking Eli's card back onto the bed. "You're worthless. Your dad doesn't even want you anymore. You're lucky I let you stay here, because without me, you'd be on the street."
Hannah shakes her head, taking another step back. "Stop it. Stop it. It's over."
"It's only over when I fucking say it's over!" he shouts, snatching the bag from her and throwing it across the room.
"N - no," she whimpers, backing away from him. "Please, just -"
She cries out when he hits her, her already bruised cheek stinging from the blow, and then he grabs her arm, yanking her to him.
"You are the biggest waste of space," he hisses, close to her face. "You're not good enough for anybody. Nobody wants you, nobody cares about you, why bother pretending that they do?"
"Let me go," she sobs, trying to pull away from him. "Please, just let me go."
He shoves her away from him, making her stumble and fall to her knees, and before she can stand, he stalks over to her and wraps his hand around her neck, pulling her to her feet and then shoving her against the wall.
She gasps when he squeezes, her hands coming up to claw at his arm as she struggles to breathe, and he just smirks.
"I fucking own you, Hannah. You'll never do any better than me, because you're fucking worthless."
Panic is beginning to seize her heart, and out of desperation, she brings her knee up, hitting him right between the legs. He howls in pain and lets her go, stumbling back as he doubles over. She slumps against the wall, coughing as she lifts her hand to her neck, and then feels fear again when he looks up at her, rage on his face.
"You little bitch," he says, his voice low and dangerous, and she spins to dart through the bedroom door, hurrying towards the kitchen. She hears him coming after her, but there's courage bubbling up inside of her, Eli's kind eyes flashing through her mind, and she knows she can't do this anymore.
She yanks open the knife drawer and pulls out the butcher knife just as he slams into her from behind, pushing her forward and smashing her arm against a glass on the counter.
The glass shatters, and she cries out as the shards slice into her arm, smearing blood on the counter.
"Get off of me!" she shrieks, bracing against the counter and pushing back.
It forces him away enough for her to turn around, and he starts to come at her again, and then stops suddenly. His eyes widen, and there's a weird pressure on her hand.
Confused, she looks down, and then her eyes widen too when she sees the butcher knife buried in his stomach, right to the hilt.
He staggers back, his hands closing around the knife, and Hannah almost tells him to stop as he pulls the knife out, knowing he has a better chance of surviving if he leaves it in, but the words don't come out.
"Call -" he gasps, his hands pressed against his stomach, blood seeping through his fingers. "Call 911."
She doesn't move, can't move. Her feet feel like they're rooted to the spot, and she watches as he falls to the floor, her fingers tightly gripping the edge of the counter.
"Help me," he wheezes, still clutching his stomach as he rolls onto his side. Blood begins to drip onto the floor, and still she can't move. The only man she's ever loved is dying right in front of her, and she can't move to do a damn thing about it.
It takes several minutes for it to be over, and then finally, he stops moving, stops breathing, his gaze fixed and staring (but not at her, and some small part of her is grateful, because she thinks she'd lose it right then and there if he was looking at her), and she presses her lips together as tears fill her eyes.
"Seth?" Her voice is a whisper, wavering on the word, and her knees feel weak. "Seth?"
There's no response except for heavy silence, and she sinks slowly to the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry," she gasps. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean -"
She trails off as she starts to sob, each harsh breath making her aching throat hurt even more. Guilt and relief fight for attention inside of her, and the relief makes her feel even guiltier, but she can't stop thinking that it's over, it's finally over. She's free.
She doesn't know how long she sits there, staring at Seth's body and crying so hard she starts to feel sick, but at some point she hears footsteps, and a soft voice saying her name.
Tearing her gaze from Seth, she looks up to see their next door neighbor, Kari, standing in the kitchen, staring at the scene in front of her. Her gaze lands on Hannah, and she moves towards her, gingerly stepping around Seth's body and the pool of blood that's spread across the floor.
"C'mon, honey," she murmurs, kneeling down and placing her hand under Hannah's elbow. "You don't need to be in here."
Hannah allows the other woman to pull her to her feet, and they walk from the kitchen into the living room. Kari lifts Hannah's arm to peer at the cuts, and then leads Hannah into the bathroom. She cleans Hannah's arm carefully before wrapping a towel around the worst of the cuts and elevating her arm.
"How do you feel?" Kari asks quietly. "Light headed?"
Hannah shakes her head vaguely, glancing at her arm before looking back at Kari.
"I didn't mean to do it," she whispers.
"I know, honey," Kari replies softly. "I know."
A few hours later, Hannah is sitting on a bed in the ER. Her foot jiggles anxiously, but for the most part, she doesn't know how to process anything that happened tonight, so her mind just feels blank.
She looks up at the sound of approaching footsteps, and a beat later the curtain is drawn back, revealing Eli.
They stare at each other for a long moment, and she tries to read his expression, tries to see if he's angry with her, if he blames her, if everything is really her fault.
But all she sees is concern, and the moment hangs suspended before he finally asks, "Are you okay?"
It's obvious that she isn't, but she knows he's not asking about her physical injuries, and she shakes her head, tears welling in her eyes as her chin quivers. He moves closer to her until he's standing right in front of her, and there's a brief moment of hesitation before she leans forward and slides her arms around his neck.
He holds her as she cries, his arms tight around her slender frame, too slender, it seems, hidden under her baggy sweater, but he's not here to judge. He knows why she called him, why he was the first person she thought of before anybody else, and he's going to give her what she needs.
They stay like that for a long time, even after her tears subside, her chin resting on his shoulder and her cheek just touching his ear. When they finally pull apart, her eyes are red and puffy, and she looks drained and exhausted. He wonders if tonight - or more likely tomorrow night - will be the first night that her sleep is restful.
But right now, he just smiles at her, and she stares solemnly back, sniffling as her hands slide down his arms.
"Was I stupid for loving him?" she whispers.
"No," Eli murmurs, shaking his head.
She holds his gaze a moment, and then ducks her head, sniffling again as she swipes her hands over her cheeks. He moves to grab the box of tissues on the rolling table and hands her one, smiling again at her mumbled thanks.
"I don't know what to do," she says finally. "I can't go back - there. Not tonight, at least. And my dad -"
"Call him," Eli says quietly.
"I can't. I've barely spoken to him in so long, he probably hates me now." Her chin quivers again at that, and Eli dips his head to meet her eyes.
"I have a feeling he doesn't. Just call him. I'll stay with you until he gets here."
Hannah looks up at him, holding his gaze for a moment before she nods and picks up her phone from the bed. She finds the contact entry for her dad, and takes a breath before tapping the screen to call him.
It's late, and she's not sure if he'll answer, but after a few rings, his sleepy voice comes on the line.
"Dad?" Hannah says softly. "It's - it's me."
"Han?" He instantly sounds more alert, and she closes her eyes. "What is it, what's wrong?"
"I need you to come get me."
"Where are you?"
"At the hospital," she says in a small voice. "In the ER."
"Okay, I'm on my way."
Hannah takes a breath as she lowers her phone, and glances at Eli before looking down again.
"He's on his way."
Eli nods, and Hannah continues to stare at her phone. She wants to believe that her dad sounded glad to hear from her, sounded genuinely concerned for her, but she can't tell. She doesn't know how he could be worried about her after everything she's done.
A short while later, she looks up at the sound of rapid footsteps, and sees her dad approaching the nurses' station before he looks over and spots her.
"Hannah," he breathes, hurrying over to her.
"Dad -" she starts, but before she can say anything else, he's hugging her tightly. She starts to cry, clinging to him as she hides her face against his shoulder, and he pulls back after a few minutes, taking her face in his hands. His expression is anguished as his eyes flick over the bruises on her face, the marks on her neck, the bandage on her arm, and he looks at her again, tears in his eyes.
"Baby, what did he do to you?"
"I'm so sorry, Daddy," Hannah sobs.
"Shh, baby, shh," David murmurs, stroking her hair as he leans forward to kiss her forehead. "It's not your fault."
"I did something terrible, though -"
"No, you didn't -"
"Yes," she insists, and he pulls back to look at her again, intently studying her face.
"What happened?" he finally asks.
"I killed him," she whispers. David's eyes widen, and she shakes her head. "I tried to leave, and he started to hurt me again, and I grabbed the knife, but I didn't mean to do it, I just wanted to scare him, but - but he came at me, and it just - happened." She sniffles, tears rapidly filling her eyes again. "I'm sorry, Daddy, I'm so sorry."
"It's okay, baby," David says softly, pushing her hair behind her ear. "You had no choice. It was self defense, and you didn't do anything wrong. It's okay."
"You're not mad at me?"
"Of course not. I'm just glad you're okay."
She bites down on her lip as she looks at him, tears still sliding down her cheeks, and then asks in a small, almost childlike voice, "Do you still love me?"
"More than anything in the world," he replies instantly, pulling her into another hug as she begins to cry in earnest again.
He holds her for a long moment, stroking her hair and rubbing her back, and she sniffles when they pull apart, reaching for a fresh tissue.
"Where's Jules?" she asks.
"At home, making up your bed. I figured if you were calling me, it was because you wanted to come home."
Hannah nods, almost smiling, and then sniffles again. "I'm sorry, Daddy. For everything."
"I know. It's okay. We can talk about things tomorrow, but right now, we need to get you home and cleaned up, and then you need to get some sleep."
Hannah nods, and David steps back so she can slide off the bed. She bends to pick up her bag from the floor, and it's then that he notices Eli.
"Who's this?" he asks, frowning.
"Oh, that's Eli, he's my - um -"
"I'm a friend." Eli extends his hand. "Eli Shaw."
David introduces himself, and frowns again. "You have an official look to you, are you a cop?"
"FBI, actually." David's frown deepens, and Eli shakes his head as he adds quickly, "Not here officially. Just as a friend, like I said."
"I'm guessing it is okay for her to leave, right?"
"Yeah, the police brought her here, but only for medical treatment. Clear cut self defense, she's not under arrest for anything. You can take her home."
David nods, turning to look at Hannah again. "Ready to go?"
She nods, and then looks at Eli.
"Thank you," she says softly. "For everything."
"Don't mention it," Eli replies with a small smile.
Hannah bites down on her lip, and then raises her eyebrows. "Can - can I call you again? You know... as a friend?"
"Yeah," Eli says, his smile widening. "Yeah, definitely."
"Okay," Hannah says, and she smiles for the first time all night. "Then I'll talk to you later."
Eli nods, still smiling, and David gives him a brief nod before sliding his arm around Hannah's shoulders, pressing a kiss to the side of her head as they start towards the exit.