One day in math...

...we got two new transfer students. They were twins named Ving and Ling who had moved in from Korea. I sat next to Ving during class and I got to know him pretty well. We liked the same books, movies, games, you name it! At the end of the quarter, we had a huge unit exam, it was about 30% of our grade. Luckily, Ving let me copy off of him on one condition, I take him to get his name changed after school. The guy absolutely despises his name, he thinks it sounds too stereotypical and racist for an Asian person. On the drive over, we talk about some new names he might want to have. He wants to share one with a movie star, maybe Arnold, maybe Sylvester, but we decide on Lee, after Bruce Lee, to keep with his roots a little bit. We get to town hall, but his sister is already there. She goes off on a rant about how his name has been passed down through generations in their family, but he doesn't care and just walks by her. The woman at the desk gives him the form to do the deed, but as he's finishing up he just breaks down. Apparently the tradition stuff runs deep with him and he just couldn't bring himself to do it. The receptionist tells him there's a fine to cancel the request, but he doesn't have any money so his sister starts digging in her purse to find some cash. Suddenly, an older Asian man bursts into the building. Obviously their father, he embraces his son, the two of them are in tears. The man says, "Don't stop, be Lee, Ving. Hold on to that fee, Ling."