Love in Taipei

My name is Ever Wong...

...and this is Chagrin Falls, Ohio,

maybe the most uneventful suburb to exist.

My parents immigrated here from Taiwan 22 years ago.

This is them. Cute, right?

Twenty-one years ago, they had me.

Wait, hold on.

That's better.

I don't think they made it out of that hospital

before planning every single moment of my existence.

The center of their world.

I don't really like being the center of anything, though.

Maybe because when you look like this

in a town that looks like this,

attention seems to find you.

But all this planning was for one purpose...

Ever Wong, MD.

Now that I'm heading to med school,

I thought I'd finally have a break.

But instead, my parents decided to send me to summer school...

in Taiwan.

The school is called the Taiwan Study Tour in Huwei.

An intensive eight-week program filled with

immersive language and history classes.

Hey! Take it in, people.

Taipei will be your home for the next eight weeks.

I'm not sure if you're still on the plane,

but this place sucks without you.

And promise me you'll find time to rehearse.

Hi.

Hi.

Counselor Mei-Hwa asked me to introduce myself to you

because you're by yourself and not talking to anyone.

Oh, um, uh, okay.

I'm Ever.

I'm Sophie Ha, like "ha-ha."

What's that? It's nothing.

Do you go to college?

Um, yes.

What are you studying?

Oh, I-- I'm at Dartmouth for Computer Science.

It wasn't my top choice,

but, you know, an Ivy is an Ivy, right?

So, where are you from?

See, I'm from New York City.

Actually, I grew up in New Jersey.

Went to high school there after my parents divorced,

which, I know, makes me tragically less interesting.

So I just tell everyone I'm from New York City.

So, are you excited for the summer?

See any guys you like?

Do you not like to talk?

Um, I-- I'm at a four-year pre-med program

in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

And, you know, I don't really know if "excited"

is the right word.

I haven't really--

Oh. Oh, okay.

You're not excited to be here?

This is obviously your first time coming to Huwei.

Yeah, uh, where I grew up,

I only knew, like, three other Asian kids.

My, my parents wanted me to come,

so I could see...

Oh, my God.

Boy Wonder.

Boy Wonder?

Are you like one of those manga geeks?

Uh-- No, no. That's not my thing.

That, that guy sitting over there, that's Rick Woo.

Uh-huh?

Like, the Rick Woo.

He's been on the cover of the World Journal at least ten times.

I have read every article about him.

He's a piano prodigy.

He also won the National Spelling Bee at age nine.

Wow, this boy's the real deal.

Sounds like someone has a crush.

- Ever! - No, no, no. My mom...

There's another feature on Rick Woo in the World Journal.

...has been obsessed with him since, like, forever.

Looks like he's studying at Yale.

Economics. Oh, and he's the star of a football team.

Mm-hm.

And so handsome.

He's her ideal child,

and she is constantly comparing me to him.

You know, if anything,

Rick Woo is the bane of my existence.

He's my cousin.

You're...

You're messing with me.

No, we are very much related.

If this trip was attracting Boy Wonder-level talent,

this program was gonna to be a lot.

You okay?

Come on. Yeah.

The-- the bag was stuck.

Yeah, I saw that. Oh, no! I got it.

Really, it's okay. I... No, don't worry. I got you.

Rick! This is Ever.

She's a big fan.

What? No, no, no. I-- I am not a fan.

She calls you Wonder Boy

and talks about you all the time with her mom.

Hey, you should ask Ever out.

I mean, you're single,

and she struggles with social skills

and making friends and stuff like that.

It's perfect. That's-- That's not--

I'm not-- I'm not actually--

He used to date this girl, Jenna. She's a model.

But, of course, you would probably know that,

being an obsessed super fan.

You know, Ever is pre-med.

So that's at least something.

The Dragon is still here? Mm-hm.

The what?

The headmistress of Huwei.

Head misery of Huwei.

I thought she was going to retire last year.

What is she saying?

She just wants us to check in for registration.

I-- I don't understand.

If you two already speak Mandarin,

why did your parents make you come?

No one made us.

Why would someone choose to spend their summer taking classes?

I mean, it's Loveboat.

Loveboat?

I'm already lost.

Why does everyone look so...

This isn't the '90s, Ever.

Everyone knows Asians are cool now.

And this isn't summer school.

This is Loveboat.

See, you keep saying that,

but I don't know what it means.

Follow me.

Parents send their kids here

because they think it's a cultural program.

But we're all here because we know what it really is.

One big party.

If it isn't Mr. Yale Superstar. All right, Stanford.

Hey, what up? I'm David.

- Ever. - Hi.

- Hi. - Sophie, right?

It's me, Spencer.

Uh, we met in Forensics Nationals.

Oh, hey!

Hey, Rick, we're going to sign up for the bo staff.

You in?

Hell yeah, 100%. Let's do it.

Catch you later, Ever.

Bye... Rick.

Okay, Boy Wonder wasn't the intense

hyper-genius I expected.

In fact, none of this was.

I'm Sophie Ha, like "ha-ha."

And this is Ever.

Wong. Like... "Wong."

Okay.

Sophie and Ever.

And you two want to room together?

That could be fun.

If this isn't summer school,

why'd they give us so many books?

You won't need them.

Hey!

Hold up!

Stop! Wait, wait, wait!

Okay, I think I know why they call it Loveboat.

Surprise!

What is it?

You are going to Taipei.

Tai-- Taipei?

Like Taiwan?

You leave Saturday.

Wait, like this this Saturday? Yeah.

We see how hard you've been studying

and preparing for your medical school

We want to give you something special, as a reward.

Sometimes, we put too much pressure on you

to follow in your father's footsteps.

We know that, so...

You have your whole life to work.

But now you're just 21 years old,

and we think you deserve to have some fun.

Which is why we're sending you to Huwei.

Think about it, it's going to be the perfect summer.

Eight weeks of Mandarin, calligraphy, and Chinese medicine.

And it's a highly competitive program to get into.

Learning the language will look great on your resume.

I think you're going to love it here.

Don't worry,

I'm gonna make sure you get the full Loveboat experience.

Now be honest, what do you think of this dress?

Oh, it-- it looks great.

I know.

So, why'd you fly halfway around the world