“So... What's up, Yumi?”

“Eh, nothing much,” I flop down over my desk and eye John as he sits next to me.

“No magical adventures?”

“No magical adventures.” I'm too tired to snark, I was up pretty late for last night's raid. I settle for a glare instead. I swear, it's been like six months since I showed them solid gold fucking coins, and they still didn't believe me!

Now it feels like they just live to tease me about it. “Next time I'll get a crest, see you argue against a magic fucking tattoo on my chest,” I grumble, apparently not out of snark after all.

“I'd gladly check out anything on your chest.”

“...”

“Oh come on, you walked right into that one,” he laughs.

“Ugh.” I roll my eyes, but don't bother answering.

I don't know, I still kind of regret coming back. Maybe just because it feels like a lost opportunity. Like, I just didn't give Verilz enough of a chance. Didn't think about it enough. But what old man Ethinmond said still sticks with me. If only one in twenty people decide to stick around, it really must not be a great place to live.

But... but still. I feel like I just went along with what everyone told me to do...

I just... I really regret not being in the fifty percent that spoke up and gave adventuring a try.

But I already know...

It's the same reason I didn't ask more, didn't learn more.

I definitely would have stayed...

“Haaaaa...” I blow out a long, exhausted breath and collapse into bed, tired after a long day of school. I grab a gold coin from my bedside table, rubbing it between my fingers. It's comforting, with how bad these last few months have been getting.

I never told my parents, why would I? I certainly didn't choose to come back because of them. Assholes. They're the biggest reason I would have stayed over there.

“Yumi, dinner!” comes my Mom's voice.

“Yeah, Mom!” Dragging my tired body out of bed, I drop my coin and head down for dinner.

Waiting in the kitchen is my perfect, smiling, white, stay at home Mother, serving plates of omurice.

Oh.

It's one of those nights.

What did Dad do this time?

Already dragging my feet, I'm accosted by my Father on the way to the table. He pulls me into a hug. I grind my teeth, but can't keep myself from returning it. Don't make waves...

“How was your day, Sweety?”

Sweety.

Cutey.

Honey.

Never Yumi.

I give some noncommittal reply, then my white, blonde, well dressed, standup, hard working, businessman Father finally releases me so I can take my god damn seat.

Me. Asian. Black haired. Asian.

And Mom named me Yumi because Dad was busy with work when I was born, like always.

They've never said a single fucking word about it.

It's just this. Just like this.

All the time.

Why didn't I stay?

“Fuck my life,” I groan, clattering my lunch tray down at the cafeteria table where my friends are already sitting.

“Magical destiny got you down?” Lina jokes, to a chorus of giggles.

Totally ignoring the comment, I complain, “Parents. As always.”

“When are they getting divorced? For real, man.” Joe questions.

“Never. They'll passive aggressive the house to the ground and fucking explode before they'll admit they hate each other.”

“Damn girl, you've gotta get your ass off to college.”

“I don't even know what I want to do!” I cry. “Besides, my major is going to be the final fucking boss fight!”

“Huh?” Alan glances around, clearly out of the loop on this one.

“Mom wants me to do asian language studies and Dad wants me to go for business.”

“Fuck.”

“Yeah,” I agree.

“Your parents are fucking garbage!”

“Tell me about it.”

“No wonder why you want to run off into magical fantasy land, I would too,” Hazel joins in as she settles into her seat.

“Come on, shut up about that!” I fire back, exasperated. They must think I'm insane since they still haven't dropped it. But from the look on their faces... why does it feel like something's off? “Fucking hell guys, it's almost been a year. Why do you all still bring that up?”

“Because it's funny?”

“Yeah, I thought you thought so too.”

“Mm.”

“Even you still joke about it,” Hazel comes in last.

“W-wait, for real?” I gape at them. I... never pressed them again after they blew me off initially. Between the stress of graduation, college, the inevitable implosion of my family, regret over the life I may have had, and now this?

I slump down on the table, just... spent. “Guys, listen.” They finally stop chuckling. “When I told you about Verilz, I wasn't joking. I'm sure you'll think I'm crazy, but I really did go there, and I really came back.”

As I speak, I see the moment on each of their faces when they realize I'm serious. Why couldn't I tell back then? Like, a year of meaningless jokes at the expense of the life I gave up on, for them. Because I truly did it for them. Not my fuckwad parents, but for my friends who I actually care about.

How can I be so dense that I didn't realize they thought it was a joke? Why couldn't I ever work up the balls to just call them on it?

I guess this is what it took. Totally shot, I heave a sigh. “I thought showing you those coins would be enough proof.”

“Come on, Yumi, some shiny coins?” John tries to talk me down gently, but it only serves to annoy me now.

Fishing inside my pocket, I bite out the words. “Gold coins. I still carry them around sometimes because I keep regretting coming back.” Retrieving the one I'm carrying on me now, I snap it down on the table.

“Nineteen point three grams per cubic centimeter. Unless it's made of something exotic like platinum, iridium, or uranium, this is a solid. Gold. Coin. One point six ounces, worth about three thousand dollars. Please, tell me where I picked up nine thousand dollars worth of identical, unidentifiable, solid gold coins.”

Of course, I didn't know all of this back then. I looked up the science and tested the shit out of these coins when everyone's dismissal briefly made me wonder if I was losing my mind.

But no, I was right. Solid gold by every scientific measurement I could make.

They're all staring at me, dumbfounded. I think they finally get it.

“You have to be shitting me, you were serious?” Alan mumbles.

“Yes. Yes I am.”