Work Text:
Let's be honest, Ultimate Voicebank Producer doesn't sound like the best talent out there.
Some may even say it's not a real talent, since you are not even the one singing! But- Fortunately, you actually took a small pride in your title!
Sure, you may not be the voice behind the song, but you are the one who composed the melody, arranged the instrumental, wrote the lyrics and even made the MVS! It's a lot of effort, so of course you have to value it.
Now, what does it have to do with todays date?
Wait. What is todays date? October 29? The same day a certain robot was activated and brought -figuratively- to life?
Indeed it is!
Again, what corelation does it have with your talent? Well... Let's just go back in time a little. Come on, you are bright. Figure this out!
---
As you were chatting away (more like nodding along the conversation while munching your PBJ sandwich) with your friends and fellow Ultimates during lunchtime, a certain subject popped up.
'What would you like to be if you weren't your Ultimate?'
As expected, most of the energetic and bubbly ones suddenly chimed in with their own answers one by one, until Leon said with his usual laidback but happy tone that he was on his way to become a rock star.
That's when the robot that was sitting by your right excitedly raised his arm and expressed in the most sincere voice you've ever heard that he wanted to be an idol. To be specific, he wanted to become the Ultimate Robot Pop Idol.
Your heart inmediatly melted at his statement. The smile on his face only worsened your state, as a light blush emerged on your cheeks.
Then... Somehow... It all went wrong. Sorta.
"No way, dude! Maybe we can collab together someday! It would be pretty cool and all... And having a robot in my music videos could help my popularity a little." The redheaded baseball player followed, offering a thumbs up and a wink. Some of the others nodded in agreement.
"Say... I've never ever heard you sing... I didn't knew robots could do that!" Everyone's not favorite liar began to tease, easily getting the reactions he expected.
"I will let this robophobic comment pass, since I am proud to offer a small example of my hard vocal training! So please, everyone, prepare your hearing receptors!" The boy himself stated, trying but failing to hide a big excited smile.
Almost everyone had their eyes on the white haired android now, eager to see -and hear- what kind of sound comes from his mouth.
"Uh... Keebo..? I-I don't think it's a good idea to-" Nervously mumbled Shuichi, who was sitting across him.
"Yeah- Dude, I don't remember installing some fucking kind of voice synthesizer or shit. You better not-" Continued the strawberry blonde inventor while pointing her finger towards the robot before getting cut off.
"SHUSH! I wanna hear Kee-boi's amazing singing voice! It's rude to interrumpt, you know?- Go ahead, Kee-baby!" Exclaimed the small purple boy again.
You yourself began to feel eager to listen to him- after all, you were some kind of music producer yourself! (And had a huge small crush on the Ultimate Robot).
The short lived silence was cut off by a tremendously damaging sound that emerged from none other than the object of your adoration that sat just at your right. Was that really Keebo's singing voice? Like- for real?
It was causing actual pain to your eardrums, but the shock prevented you from showing any kind of expression. Not that you wanted to! That would break the poor boy's hear and shatter his dreams! And that wouldn't happen under [Y/N]'s watch! Never!
Right?
"YO- CUT IT OUT FUCKER! IT WILL MAKE MY PRECIOUS BRAIN LEAK FROM MY EARS LIKE SOME KIND OF FUCKING TOOTHPASTE!!" The very rude but femenine voice of Miu rang through the room, silencing everyone there temporarily.
Multiple sets of eyes were dead set on the poor short robot boy. A few of them ranged from pity to annoyance, making Keebo loose all the confidence he had earlier.
He flushed a dark color and sank his head lower, spluttering a loud-but-not-so-loud string of apologies.
"Man! I thought I was about to loose my sense of hearing! If it wasn't of Miu's bitchy yell, I'm sure I would! Kee-boi, you suck at singing." Kokichi laughed. "Maybe you should settle for something else... Oh! How does 'Ultimate Roomba' sound to you?" He grinned, placing his arms behind his head.
You slammed your open palms in the lunch table, your sandwich long gone.
"Why you little piece of-" But you were cut off by the loud ringing that indicated that your classes were about to resume.
Using this as a perfect opportunity to flee from the now tense athmosphere, almost everyone inmediatly grabbed their stuff and left with half assed 'goodbyes'. Almost everyone but the previous center of attention.
"Hey, Keebo...? Don't worry ab-" You began, stretching a hand to pat at his shoulder.
"Yes, [Y/N]! Don't worry about me! I'm perfectly fine! Are YOU okay? I should be apologizing- But we will be late, let's go. Haha!" He inmediatly perked up, marching towards his next class.
But you being you, the Ultimate Keebo Expert, knew something was up. And boy, were you gonna try to help him.
---
"Keebo!! Hey!" You tried to catch up to the boy's fast steps, it has been almost a week after the singing incident, so almost everyone has forgotten about it.
Almost. Those exceptions being the annoying gremlin, the worried emo detective, yourself and the singing robot.
Shuichi being the good boy he is, expressed his concern about his robot friend's self confidence. He noted that Kokichi kept on bringin the singing incident, much to everyone's dismay.
He just loved to joke about everyone's insecurities, and when he found Keebo's, he sure took the chance to milk it.
"Oh! [Y/N]. What brings you here?" The white haired robot seemed a little out of himself.
"What brings me here? Keebo, we are friends. Am I not supposed to talk to my best friend? We even hang out most weekends! Don't break my heart, man..." You joked a little, hoping to at least bring a smile to his face.
"Ah... Friends? Yeah...! I apologize for that! Yes." His gaze went down for a small moment. A tiny smile made its way into his expression.
"Do you want to 'hang out' for a while? Because if so, I'm terribly sorry but I would have to decline your offer. As you see, our math proffesor has assigned us multiple exercises to do at home! And I suggest you to do your own homework too!" He began to scold you lightly, a stern but caring look on his eyes. Boy, was he adorable.
"Yeah, yeah, but... I- uh... Kinda wanted to do something at my Ultimate Lab, and uh... actually I need your help." You fiddled with your hand for a second, switching your gaze from his face to your fingers.
Obviously, hearing the word 'Help' come from a dear friend's mouth triggered some kind of need to assist said person. His expression brightened, then a determined look took over his face.
"Alright! But only because you need help. No playing around, understood, [Y/N]?" He turned to look directly into your eyes taking you by surprise.
"Ah-! Y-yeah! Sure thing man-bro-dude!" You mentally cringed at the last part. Ugh. "W-well then, let's go!" You took his cold metal hand into yours and began to power walk in the direction of your Lab, not noticing the obvious blush that appeared in his face.
As soon as you arrived, you let go of his hand -much to his disappointment- and marched towards a desk with a setup of two screens, a microphone and a few other sound recording gadgets.
His confusion only grew when you asked him to stand in front of the mic and to start talking.
"I uh... [Y/N]...? Why would you want me to-" But before he could say anything that reminded him of that, you interjected.
"Well uh... It's kinda hard to explain but, I wanted to try and imitate uh... A normal conversation between two people! Yes! So I need you to speak clearly into the mic a few lines, doesn't matter what you say!" You lied, hoping that the boy would actuallt believe you.
"But... Isn't my voice a little... Bothersome?" His expression fell a little, the small smile still sitting on his face.
"NO! Not at all!" You yelled a little too loudly. "I uh, I actually really really like your voice! It's beautiful!- Wait, was that too weird?" This time you noticed the blush that crawled back in both faces.
He laughed, relaxing a little. Feeling better, he accepted your request and began to ramble into the microphone about nothing in particular. After a few minutes, you signaled that it was enough, and that he could leave.
He excused himself and bid a small goodbye, wishing you a nice day and good luck with your homework and whatever you were doing in your Lab.
You inmediatly began to furiously type away in the computer, opening and closing programs.
After a couple of hard working days and half assed homework, you finally did it.
Keebo's digitally tuned voicebank.
Now, you had to think how the hell you were going to implement it into him.
Fortunately, your answer was almost God-sent as Miu suddenly opened your Lab's door, yelling a few curses while asking you for your opinion on her new invention. And of course, it was something lewd (how on earth would Hope's Peak school allow this, you wondered).
And then, after begging on your knees for a while, she decided she would help you.
---
"Alright, you annoying brat. Here it is! A special USB with your dumb program to help Keeboy with his problem. Now, get the fuck out of my sight before I regret helping you! Ah- haha!" She held her stomach as she laughed loudly.
Unable to maintain your composture, you leaped to your friend and gave her a small kiss on the cheek, then ran directly to your lab again leaving the girl in a flushed state.
"H-Hnng~! Unexpected girl on girl development!" Was the last thing you heard from there.
---
Alrighty, now you probably know why you are holding a small box in your sweaty hands while you wait for Keebo's last class to end.
As if on cue, the bell rang and everyone began to rush out, glad that they were done with today's learning. When you spotted your best friend, you inmediatly forgot what you were going to say.
"Oh! [Y/N]! I didn't see you at lunch... Are you okay? You don't look like you're feeling good..." He began to worry.
"Ah-! No! I mean- yes! I'm good. It's just, uh..." You shoved the box in his chest, startling both of you. "Happy Birthday, haha! I kind of... Forgot to see you at lunch. I was working on your gift! It even has instructions and all!"
"Instructions...?" He tilted his head to the side, then looked at the box with an excited smile. Gosh, he looked too darn cute. You just wanted to ruffle his hair and pinch his cheeks and-
"Is this... An USB drive...? [Y/N] I wasn't expecting a robophobic joke from you-" You cut him off inmediatly.
"No, no, no, no! Open the pamphlet first! Please!" You urged him, feeling how your face was starting to heat up. He gave you a little confused look, but obeyed.
"Happy Birthday Keebo. And welcome to your new... Singing voice...? [Y/N] I-... W-what?" He looked like a huge collision of emotions, eyes wide open, a small blush evident and his mouth opening and closing.
"Uh... Yeah! You know how my Ultimate talent is that I produce songs from virtual singers? I can also make new voicebanks! And I uh... Er... Made you a voicebank based on your real voice..." You laughed a little, feeling nervous under his gaze and half expecting him to yell at you.
"[Y/N]-" He was about to say something, but a familiar (and annoying) voice rang from behind you.
"Wow, [Y/N]. I knew you were a weirdo, but recording his voice without his consent? And making your strange computer stuff with it? Man! Sooo creepy!" Kokichi giggled, giving you a huge grin.
"Get the hell outta here, small piss baby! My boy here is getting real coochie, unlike you." Miu (kind of?) saved you, seemingly coming out of nowhere. She gave you and Keebo a huge smile and a thumbs up with one hand, using the other to drag the small gremlin by his uniform's collar to wherever she was going.
"... As I was saying... Uh... I sincerely do not know how to react. I'm sorry. Thank you." His face was now covered in a full blush. How do robots even blush?
You took the small black and blue USB and signaled to it, a small smile present on your expression.
"Maybe you could try it...? I- I mean, only if you want to."
"Well... You worked really hard on this, am I correct? Then it's my obligation to try it out!" The robot said, seemingly more positive than before.
He gently grabbed the drive in his fingers and looked for a small port in his neck piece, you could only watch, your nerves already on edge.
Keebo slowly closed and opened his eyes. The downloading process was already finshed. He truly was amazing.
"How do I... Use it?" He seemed more tense than you.
"Just... Try singing the Happy Birthday song to yourself!" You offered with a kind smile in attempt to ease him a little.
"Please... Could you cover your ears? The last thing I want to do is hurt you." The last part caught you off guard, your heart began to melt again. You nodded and used your hands to shield your ears.
You could see him putting a hand to his chest, then to his throat, and lastly to his mouth. A shocked expression took over him. His eyes snapped to yours, a huge smile made it's way on his face. He soflty grabbed your hands from the sides of your head and held them.
"[Y/N]-... I... I... Thank you. Thank you a lot. This... Makes me so happy. If I could cry, I would be sobbing happily right now! Thanks a lot! I really, really appreciate you." If his words weren't enough to completely melt your heart, his smile sure would. He was so bright. It was worth every single missed homework and more.
To be honest, you were about to pass out right there. Can't blame you.
---
Ever since you gave Keebo his voicebank, you began to see him less day by day. You were starting to worry. A lot.
The boy was avoiding you, and his lies were the worse. Little homeboy can't lie to save his life. First he said that he was working in his lab, and right after that you could see him leaving school as soon as the bell rang. He never even liked his lab to begin with! Then he started to talk less, saying that he could be sick. He was a robot, for heck's sake! How on earth could he get sick?
The last straw was when you accidentaly overheard his conversation with Shuichi. They were talking about the best way to confess his feelings.
Now, was he really ditching you, his best friend, for someone else? You weren't jealous! Not at all!
Your confidence was starting to drop dangerously low. Was he tired of you? Did he find someone pretty and nice now that he could sing his little mechanic heart out? Well, that sucked.
But you weren't just giving up! Not now, at least!
You caught a glimpse of his ahoge among the crowd of students, and in a second you were by his side, a determined expression on your face.
"Hey." You greeted in a serious tone.
"[Y/N], hi! How was your day?" He greeted back in a more cheerful tone, though his eyes never met yours.
"Lonely. Do you have a moment? We could hang out now that school's over..."
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry... I have to do a few things in my lab and-" You cut him off.
"Keebo. You keep on ditching me. Is something wrong? Do... Do you not wanna be friends anymore...?" Your expression fell, you were afraid of his response, but you needed to know,
"No! Of course I want to keep on being your friend! It's just that..." He stopped in his tracks, his gaze on the ground.
"Just that... What?" You halted your steps in front of him, worry taking over your body.
He sighed, closed his eyes for a few seconds and shook his head, then lifted his gaze to meet yours. You could sense anxiety, determination and something else you coulnd't identify.
"Why don't you... Follow me back to my Lab?" He asked.
"... Sure, why not?" As soon as those words left your lips, he did a tight spin in his place and walked -more like marched- to his Ultimate Lab, with you following behind.
---
He closed the door behind you both, then offered you a seat in one of the spinny chairs that were around. Clearing his throat, Keebo looked around nervously before finally meeting your gaze again. Boy, all of this eye contact was making your head dizzy.
"Alright, so... As my best friend, you, [Y/N] have been one of the most important person in my life. And after receiving your birthday gift I... Well... Realized something. And I wanted to do something for you, since you keep on making my life better. So please, don't laugh if it doesn't sound as good as your music, just know that this is coming from my heart. Okay?" He looked like he was about to blue screen right in front of you. And honestly, you could relate.
The robot exhaled, closed his eyes, then began to sing soflty, the voicebank you made him sounding as if it was his own voice -In a way, it really was his voice.
"Can’t ever let my heart forget today, a feeling I’ll never see
The pattern made to fit, I cut myself a place in the seam
And suddenly I’m singing out a line but catch it to make it mine
Be free, the words in me, to ride atop this melody beginning to fly
I’ll sing it for the words I wanna reach you
I’ll sing it for the day it finally meets you
If every pixel joins into a straight line
So can all this sound live on as starlight
I’ll sing it for the words I wanna reach you
I’ll sing it for the day it finally meets you
If every pixel joins into a curved line
So can all this sound connect, music, yours and mine..."
And now you were actually crying, but the robot only realized when he heard you sniffle. He was inmediatly pushed into a panic state.
"O-oh no, did I upset you? Was my voice damaging?! I'm so, so sorry! The thing is, I actually wanted to confess my true feelings for you with this song! But maybe it was a bad idea? I'm really sorry! What I wanted to say... Is that I am in love with you...!" He was talking too fast, but you understood every word that came from his mouth.
You couldn't believe your ears. Were you dreaming? First, the boy you like sings a small song for you, now he is literally blurting out a love confession. You face coulnd't be more red.
"I-I... Gee, Keebo. You left me speechless." You laughed a little, then got up from the chair. "Ah, don't worry! You didn't hurt me at all! I fact, i-it was beautiful! I... I want to record it! Only if you allow me to, of course!" Feeling a little more confident, you took one of his hands into yours. "A-and... I l-love you too! I was about to confess too, actually!"
Then, you put your arms around the stuttering robot boy and hugged him, hoping it didn't make him uncomfortable. You felt a sudden weight in your shoulder.
The mad lad really blue screened right in your arms.