“Unknowing, let us sleep. Chest against chest,Our breathing mingled, hand in hand without dreams.”

“Without thinking, he reached for her hand. Tucked it against her chest, feeling that was where it should be. Perry's heart slammed against his ribs. She had to feel it.”

“The drone in my ear, it’s like the tornado drill in elementary school, the hand-cranked siren that rang mercilessly, all of us hunched over on ourselves, facing the basement walls, heads tucked into our chests. Beth and me wedged tight, jeaned legs pressed against each other. The sounds of our own breathing. Before we all stopped believing a tornado, or anything, could touch us, ever”

“She pressed her hand against her chest. No heart. So where did the love she felt come from?”

“I had a dream I put my hands inside my chest and held my heart to try to keep it still.”

“The minute you see him, your hand will throb, your heart will pound out of your chest, and you won't be able to breathe.”