Shatter-Me-PDF-Shatter-Me-Series-Shatter-Me-Shatter-Me-1-Tahereh-Mafi (1)

We’re darting in a million directions. Turning abruptly,
going forward a few feet only to head back in an opposite
path. My best guess is that Adam is trying to confuse and/or
distract our followers as much as possible. I can do nothing
but attempt to keep up.
And I fail.
Adam is a trained soldier. He’s built for exactly these kinds
of situations. He understands how to flee, how to stay
inconspicuous, how to move soundlessly in any space. I, on
the other hand, am a broken girl who’s known no exercise
for too long. My lungs are burning with the effort to inhale
oxygen, wheezing with the effort to exhale carbon dioxide.
I’m suddenly gasping so desperately Adam is forced to pull
me into a side street. He’s breathing a little harder than
usual, but I’ve acquired a full-time job choking on the
weakness of my limp body.
Adam takes my face in his hands and tries to focus my
eyes. “I want you to breathe like I am, okay?”
I wheeze a bit more.
“Focus, Juliette.” His eyes are so determined. Infinitely
patient. He looks fearless and I envy him his composure.
“Calm your heart,” he says. “Breathe exactly as I do.”
He takes 3 small breaths in, holds it for a few seconds, and
releases it in one long exhalation. I try to copy him. I’m not
very good at it.
“Okay. I want you to keep breathing like—” He stops. His
eyes dart up and around the abandoned street for a split
second. I know we have to move.
Gunshots shatter the atmosphere. I’d never realized just
how loud they are or just how much that sound fractures
every functioning bone in my body. An icy chill seeps
through my blood and I know immediately that they’re not
trying to kill me. They’re trying to kill Adam.
I’m suddenly asphyxiated by a new kind of anxiety. I can’t
let them hurt him.
Not for me.