(inspired by Anne Carson’s short talks.)

Valerie Solanas didn’t want a son, but the men of this world are cruel and she was forced to have one anyway. Whenever she would look into her son’s eyes with disdain, Solanas felt a dull pain throbbing in the corner of her mouth. She’d lie to herself—“It must be the caramel ice cream I had earlier.” She’d lie to herself over and over and over again.

Of course, Solanas didn’t know she was lying to herself—she despised that sort of behavior. Lying was a man’s job.

What Solanas couldn’t have known about the ache in her mouth was that it was a scream, a cry, a wail. She still had a child’s tooth in her mouth, and it was begging her to be a good mom.