Pushing Gus Away Character Analysis

Hazel displays signs of protective buffering when she candidly tells Gus that she cannot be with him in anyway. After Hazel tenses up when Gus touches her, she realizes that for her to be with Gus she will have to hurt him (TFIOS 121), and she felt as though she would commit an act of violence against Gus to do so. Pushing Gus away is the only solution to keep him safe from Hazel, and in order to avoid a talk with Gus, Hazel decides to text Gus and tell him that she can’t kiss or do anything with him because when she sees him she is only thinking of what she will put Gus through when she dies (TFIOS 122). The fact that Hazel chooses to distance herself from Gus shows that she is trying to protect him from herself and her illness because she