Tough Beans

Sweetheart. Buttercup. Sugar. Baby. Babe? Babe? For as long as you can remember, you've never really had a name--never needed one. For 22 years people have swaddled you in epithets, letting you know that even though you're not quite on the right track, the world is there to hold your hand. Your father, your friends, your boyfriend. Gas station attendants. Sweetie, do you know what you're doing there? Truth be told, it's never really mattered to you before. Sometimes you've even liked it. Not today, though. Today something is wrong.