NIKE (Long "i" silent "e")

My very bright little Asian boy came up to me on Tuesday to show me his new shoes. "Mrs. Flynn," he said, "Last night, we went to the Nike store." Now, when you read that sentence, recognize that he did not say, "Nike," pronouncing the "e" as we know we are supposed to. No, he knows his long middle vowel, silent e rule, and he followed it to a tee. "Nike?" I said, saying it correctly. "No, Nike," he said again, with a long i, silent e. He told me the entire story of going to the store, picking out the shoes, and wearing them for PE today, and each time he said, "Nike" (long i, silent e), I said it correctly, over whatever else he was saying. And he continued. Hilarious. He would not give in. He knows his rules.