AITA for not responding when someone doesn't use my actual name?
Nico’s name is more than just a word—it’s his identity, a simple truth that many fail to accept. At sixteen, he has endured the weight of being misunderstood, not just in name but in the fragmented pieces of family that surround him.
Born into foster care, his life has been a series of temporary places and fleeting connections, with only brief moments to see the mother he barely knows.
Despite the scars of a fractured past, Nico has found a rare haven in his current foster family, where love and acceptance fill the silence left by abandonment.
Yet, even in this new home, whispers of rejection linger through the coldness of extended family members who refuse to honor his true name. In their refusal, Nico fights not just for a name, but for belonging.
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Nico is facing a conflict where his deeply held personal identity, centered on his name, clashes with the persistent, unsolicited suggestions from his foster family's extended relatives.
While his foster parents support his right to be called Nico, the pressure from relatives who insist on using 'Nicholas' for perceived professionalism creates significant emotional strain and forces him into a difficult choice between asserting his identity and maintaining peace within his highly valued foster home.
Is Nico justified in asserting his identity by ignoring those who deliberately use the wrong name, even if it causes friction with extended family, or should he prioritize social harmony by accepting the repeated misnaming given the importance of maintaining a stable placement?