Loving Him Cost Me Everything

My boyfriend was always mixing up my name with his ex-girlfriend's.

When he cooked, he'd call out without thinking: "Princess Claudie, grab your bowl and chopsticks, dinner's ready."

On the birthday gift he gave me, the card read Happy Birthday, Baby Claudie.

Even in our most intimate moments, he'd murmur against my ear, "Claudie, want me to be gentler?"

After the ten-thousandth time he got it wrong, the irritation I'd felt at first had dulled into resignation.

All I could do was turn his face toward mine, look him in the eyes, and correct him, over and over.