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Kiibo fiddled with the envelope in his hands. It appeared more substantial than just a plain black envelope thanks to the worn-gold wax used to seal it. But that’s not why he’s nervous, it’s the contents inside the envelope.
The day before, he had spent a lot of time on his calligraphy to make Kokichi’s birthday present look nice. He didn’t want it to seem as if not much effort had been put into it. In fancy, bold letters he had written “One Favor Courtesy of K1-B0” on the paper inside. A voucher that Kokichi can use to get any assistance he needs, and Kiibo will be happy to oblige.
The robot didn’t want to seem cheap by giving him a seemingly worthless piece of paper. He could’ve easily bought the supreme leader some food or something powerful-looking (words from the boy himself) that he knew he’d enjoy, but when he asked Miu what he should get him, she said something along the lines of ‘giving him his body’. When he asked her why she couldn’t do that herself, she just said something about how it wouldn’t satisfy him. He quickly concluded it was probably a robot body he desired. Of course, Kiibo can’t detach himself and give it to Kokichi (not that he would if he could), so this was the next logical thing!
“It’s not what I had in mind, but you actually did it,” Miu pondered after he had just told her about his gift. She observed the envelope in his hands from his side, peering closely and the engraving on the wax. “You even put his initials on the stamp!”
Kiibo just shook his head and asked, “Do you truly think this is a wise idea? What if he doesn’t like it…or makes fun of it?” He can already imagine it, Kokichi opening his gift and laughing at the ridiculous idea of him needing help from a robot–one who can’t even do anything robot-like. No, he wouldn’t! Kiibo is an amazing robot capable of various things! He is always talking about how his functions are useless though…but—
“Pshh as if,” Miu interrupted his thoughts with a dismissive wave in the air, as if Kiibo wasn’t having a whole crisis next to her, ”He’ll probably like it more than mine…that little brat.” She walked over to the other side of the room and placed her hand on a soda machine she had built really quickly yesterday. It had about five flavors to choose from. The nicest gifts usually appeared to come from Miu, perhaps because they gave her something to tinker with when she's not busy; anyway, it was amazing.
“What makes you so sure of that?” He asked curiously, turning away from the machine to her. Yeah sure, the supreme leader might be happy to have something over Kiibo, but that’s all he can think of.
“He’ll probably ask to see your dick,” she snickered both at the thought and Kiibo’s reaction. His eyes grew wide. He never even considered that a possibility! She looked at him and laughed even harder as if she could read his thoughts, kneeling over just to catch her breath. “I’m just pulling your metaphorical dick Kiibo, the little virgin wouldn’t ask that. He’s too much of a pussy.”
Well, that’s a bit harsh.
He eyed Miu’s gift. To be honest, it wasn't the most attractive and certainly wasn't as high-tech as he was. It had a metal base, multiple protruding knobs, and labels above each one that named the sugary soda it would pour out. Despite looking like that though, it was stable and its contents were sure to make the birthday boy thrilled–even if he didn't show it. His professor used to tell him it was on the inside that counts, and it seems like the contraption fits the description perfectly.
That quote didn’t seem to apply to his gift, though. The sleek, black envelope looked practically untouched (thanks to his own careful hands) and it was secured with a gold wax seal that had the faintest of a ‘K’ in it. It was beautiful and something that Kiibo was quite pleased with. The inside, on the other hand, not so much. Maybe he should talk to someone less…ill-mannered.
“His birthday is today?!” Kaito uttered loudly, mouth full of rice so his words were muffled slightly.
Kiibo nodded, making sure to keep his gift as far away from Kaito as possible. He wasn’t exactly the neatest eater.
The astronaut swallowed his food quickly, throwing his arms up in the air, “Why didn’t someone remind me! Now I have to do some last-minute shopping…” he sulked and face palmed dramatically. Perhaps Kaito wasn’t the best candidate to solve his issues.
“Shuichi told you yesterday,” Kiibo told him pointedly, “you know…when he went shopping for his gift? He even asked you if you wanted to join.” The only reason he remembered it so vividly was because Shuichi had asked him the same thing. Of course, he declined because he was too busy working on his gift.
“That’s what that was for?” Kaito pondered to himself, dragging his hand down his face before sighing in defeat, “Ugh, I’ll worry about that later. What did you want to tell me?”
Well, he originally intended to ask him what he got for Kokichi but that doesn’t appear to be going so well. Kiibo did want to ask Kaito something to not waste his time and stress him out for nothing. “What do you suggest I should get for Kokichi?” Perfect! That way Kaito can tell him what he thinks and if it’s good enough maybe he can change his gift.
“Oh, cool man! You haven’t gotten him one either?” Kaito got up quickly, pushing the chair behind him loudly. He slung an arm around Kiibos' shoulder eagerly, making the robot jump at contact, “We can go shopping together, bounce ideas around, maybe even–”
Kiibo glanced around rapidly in search of a diversion, tuning the astronaut out in the process. This was his fault, he should’ve just kept quiet and looked for someone else. He did enjoy Kaito’s company, but he can get carried away. “What about your food?” He spoke out. The robot eyed the abandoned bowl sitting lonesome on the table. Why was he even eating alone in the dining hall? At 10 am?
Kaito waved it off, “It’s fine. Kirumi can clean it up, you know she enjoys that kind of stuff.” Kiibo felt himself being dragged out the door. This was happening way too fast! What if Kokichi’s gift gets folded or wrinkled?
“Let’s go!” The taller boy announced, parading out with his arm still looped around the robot.
The next thing Kiibo knew, he was in the mall following closely behind Kaito as they went store to store. How he got dragged into this, he will never know. Although he doesn’t have pockets, he was still able to put his present for Kokichi into a small compartment in his torso where it was safe from the outside world (and more importantly, Kaito).
Kaito was kneeling on the ground, observing some weird water gun that was on the bottom shelf. “Do you think this would be good?” Kaito asked, looking back to Kiibo who was standing slightly behind him. It had a white base with green handles and some orange accents to make it more appealing. To Kiibo though, it just made it worse.
However, it appeared to be something Kokichi would genuinely enjoy. It may give him some…nefarious ideas, and it may be a huge regret in a couple of days when they find themselves soaked in water during breakfast, but it’ll make the supreme leader happy and that’s all that matters. It can shoot continuously for a whole minute and with a distance of ten yards…yay?
“I think he will find great delight in using it,” Kiibo nodded with a smile, trying to avoid mentioning what could become of it once it gets in his hands. Kaito beamed, “What about you? Are you gonna get him anything? If you want we could just split the credit on this one,” Kaito stood up holding the gift out in pride, and they began to make their way to the checkout. He and Kokichi did start on a rough patch, so it must feel good giving him something with thought put into it, even if it was beyond the last minute.
“Thank you for the offer, Kaito, but I already have a gift,” He was genuinely warmed that the astronaut would offer to share his present with him. Throughout their lengthy trip though, he had realized just how hard it was to shop for a supreme leader.
“Huh?!” Kaito turned to Kiibo in a second, purple eyes widened slightly as he looked down at the robot, “Why didn’t you tell me earlier? You know I wouldn’t mind if I had to shop by myself.”
Kiibo wasn’t completely sure why he stuck around so long. Kaito tends to talk to himself a lot and is pretty expressive, making it a nice way to observe human behavior. He asked for Kiibo’s opinions on lots of things that felt good. Plus it was pretty fun.
“I know, but I don’t mind,” Kiibo said instead. Now wasn’t the time to blabber on about stuff he probably didn’t care about. They continued walking towards the checkout through the intricate isles, which in Kiibo’s opinion, was completely unnecessary.
A smile made its way to Kaito’s face, “Well thanks anyway,” he chuckled. In the least robophobic way possible: he never expected to find himself thanking a robot for putting up with him…or thinking something like ‘in the least robophobic way possible. ’ “What did you get him?”
Hesitantly, Kiibo opened up the compartment on his chest, pulling out the envelope gently. “It’s,” Kiibo started. Now he was beginning to feel embarrassed about his present all over again. It’s too late to back off now, “It’s a voucher. If Kokichi wants a favor, he can just use it and I will do it for him.”
“A voucher huh?” Kaito mumbled, tapping a finger on his chin in thought. Kiibo wished he could read minds right now because the look on his face was practically unreadable.
“Do you think it is an unsuitable gift?” The robot asked warily, looking at Kaito’s face as he observed the card. The purple-haired boy turned to him and saw a saddened expression on Kiibo’s face.
“No, of course not!” Kaito shook his head hastily with his signature grin, “I’m just upset I didn’t think of it first!” He observed the black envelope and its golden seal, which looked to have a lavish design on it. He had a lot of effort put into it.
“Hmm,” Kiibo hummed as he and Kaito approached the cashier to buy the gift. He did notice the woman gave them a weird look. Maybe it was odd that two teenagers (one being a robot) were buying nothing but one water gun. That has got to be against her cashier handbook!
Kaito patted him on the back in a supporting manner, “Don’t stress out about it, I know he’ll love it. And that’s coming from me! You don’t even have to be a robot for that gift to hold any value.” Kiibo didn’t know what he meant by that because the whole point was getting a robot to do something for you, but he decided it was just best to ignore it. Sometimes Kaito said stuff for the sake of saying stuff.
Once they finished the purchase, they were finally out of the mall. Kaito sighed in relief as they began their walk back to the dorms, “Well, I’m glad that’s over with! I was worried I would never find anything.” Kiibo thought now wasn’t the time to mention that he knew of Kokichi’s birthday for a total of two hours.
Just as they opened the door to enter the dorms, a familiar head of dark purple popped up causing both Kiibo and Kaito to recoil at the sudden surprise.
“Gah!” Kaito shouted, holding a hand to his chest, “what the hell is wrong with you man?!” He glared at the shorter boy.
“Nishishi,” Kokichi cackled laugh loudly at both of their reactions, “you should’ve seen your faces!”
“Kokichi, you shouldn’t go around scaring people like that! Especially Kaito, you know he gets scared easily,” Kiibo lectured, disregarding the small ‘hey’ of rebuttal from the boy next to him.
“You’re no fun Kiiboy,” the supreme leader fake pouted. He rolled on his heels looking like he was about to say something else when he spotted the bag in Kaito’s hand. Leaning forward slightly, he pointed his finger towards the cheap plastic bag.
“What’s in there? You got some weird secret we should know about Kaito? Hmm?” He peered suspiciously at the contents, seemingly still not being able to make it out.
“What?! No!” Kaito furrowed his eyebrows, but his eyes softened from the glare he previously held. “It's a gift for your birthday,” he said as he gave Kokichi the bag. “Duh.”
Kokichi eyed the bag being shoved in his face before grabbing it and taking the box out of the bag. His eyes shone as he looked at the water gun, a smile making its way into his face.
“Wow, I can’t believe you, of all people remembered. You couldn’t even wrap it?” Kokichi mumbled, looking at his present from all angles.
Kaito scowled, “That’s what I was about to do before you interrupted us asshole! And it was Kiibo that reminded me, so thank him.”
“Thank you Kiibo—“
“It’s an expression!”
Kiibo needed to intervene soon or this quarrel was only going to get worse. “Kaito wanted to make sure it was a satisfactory gift,” he smiled as kindly as he could when there was shouting around him, which immediately got the attention of Kokichi.
“Oh really?” He raised an eyebrow and dragged out the sentence dramatically, “I didn’t know you two cared so much! It warms my heart.” Kiibo honestly could not tell if he was lying or not. Or trying to make it sound like a lie to mask the truth. He was confusing.
“Psh forget it,” Kaito grumbled, pointing a finger at Kokichi accusingly, “Anyways I have to go. Shuichi and I have to uh water his plants.” And with that Kaito was gone, and he watched as the astronaut hurriedly made his way into Shuichi’s room.
Before Kiibo could question when Shuichi got plants, he felt a grip on his arm already tugging him upstairs. This has been happening way too easily—he weighs 196 pounds!
“Kiiboy you need to watch me open up the rest of my gifts so I can show you how popular I am,” Kokichi grinned and opened the door to his room, shoving the robot in there. Before he knew it, he was sitting on Kokichi’s bed, said boy right next to him with a small pile of gifts in front of them.
He looked around the room intently. There were a lot of…odd things in there, but he shouldn’t expect any less. The whiteboard across the bed had all of his classmates' pictures taped onto it, and some even have some notes. Under his picture it said…
“Weird?” Kiibo asked. He’s not as offended as he is confused—and perhaps a bit offended. Kokichi must’ve noticed because he leaned forward so he was in front of Kiibo blocking his view, “Don’t mind that, it’s old.“
Kiibo nodded slowly, still looking a bit unsure. He was not weird, if he weren’t made of metal he’d be the most normal one there!
Kokichi frowned slightly, “If it makes you feel better,” he averted his eyes away from Kiibo’s, “weird people are…good…?”
What?!
Before Kiibo could even question it, Kokichi grabbed a present in front of him. It was long and slender. The wrapping paper was blue with white stripes, and it looked like three other gifts had the same paper. Kiibo laughed slightly at the thought of someone having to share their wrapping paper with three other panicking people.
Kokichi, on the other hand, cannot believe he just said that. To Kiibo’s face. It’s probably just the overwhelming amount of emotions he’s feeling since it’s his birthday because no sane person would ever say that. Well, then again he’s been told he’s insane…several times.
“Um, are you going to open it, Kokichi?” A soft voice spoke from beside him.
Kiibo’s never called him those things. In fact, he calls him his friend! Even after everything he’s teased him about?
“Of course, a robot-like you may not know this, but you always have to pause for dramatic effect!” he replied, cursing silently at himself for letting himself hesitate like that. He cleared his throat and read the sticker on the side of the box,
“‘To Kokichi, from Kaede: Happy birthday and best wishes!’,” he read out loud, “Look at how cheesy everyone’s getting for my birthday.” Despite his kind of rude comment, he was smiling.
He set his hands on the box and practically tore the paper off in an instant. It looked like an elongated briefcase, and when he opened it he was face-to-face with a wooden flute. “It looks gorgeous,” Kiibo inputted from beside him, admiring all of the details of the small instrument. He’s sure Kaede is trying to form some sort of band or something because just last month Kirumi received an oboe.
Kokichi picked it up gently, observing the carvings that made the keyholes. It was made of bamboo wood.
He smiled and put the instrument to his lips confidently. Kiibo watched attentively. Maybe Kokichi was some sort of secret flute playing professional?
A high-pitched squeak echoed in the room, followed by several others. Every single note was either out of tune or didn’t come out.
“Well, that’s useless,” he said when he was done, but he still placed the flute gently back into its case and set it on his desk. “Next present!”
When he tried to pick up the next one, it could barely lift off of the ground, so he resorted to just sitting on the ground in front of it. The robot follows suit after Kokichi pat the ground beside him as if beckoning a dog.
He was excited for this one just because it was huge. Plus, just by the way Kiibo looked trying to hold a nonchalant expression, he could tell the robot already knew what it was. He was such a horrible liar it was endearing. Not that he’d ever say that out loud.
He turned his eyes to the card laying on top and opened it. Miu! Of course. Only she would give such a showy gift. “From Miu To Kokichi,” the leader put a hand to his heart, as if touched, “Aww she used my actual name, how sweet!
And thank God he cut himself off there because the rest of the note was not as…formal. He continued to read it in his head, ‘Happy birthday you little bitch,’ yeah that’s more like it… ’next time I ask for something, just know I helped with Kiibo’s gift as well.’ Kokichi cocked an eyebrow at that. He didn’t even consider getting a gift from Kiibo, and in all honesty, he thought he just didn’t get him one in the first place. He may or may not have thought robots didn’t know how to give presents. Now that he thought about it, it sounded kind of ridiculous.
He just shook his head mentally and began to tear away at the once again, blue and white wrapping paper. “Hey Kiiboy,” he asked, eyes still focused on the box in front of him that now showed some metal below the thin paper, “Did you get me anything?”
Kiibo decided to ignore the nickname once again, instead perking up at the mention of his gift for Kokichi. “Actually,” Kiibo held his head up in pride and opened up some weird compartment on his chest, pulling out a black envelope, “I did!” He had a big smile on his face as he held it out carefully.
“I apologize if it’s not satisfactory. Miu said my body would be the most sufficient gift, but that is quite literally impossible so this is the closest I can get,” Kiibo continued with a smile on his face, but Kokichi felt himself freeze. His body!? Why would Miu say that and more importantly, how did she know?!
Kokichi looked Kiibo in the eyes (against his will) and took the envelope. He observed the way the gold looked against the black, and it seemed to have little flecks of glitter in it that made it look entrancing. There was a ‘K’ in a cursive style, most likely for his name.
He grinned, trying to ignore the blush that was still on his face from the previous comment and plopped it on the bed next to them, “You know what they say, save the best for last.”
The way Kiibo’s eyes brightened at his words made him turn back to Miu’s present quickly to avoid showing any foreign emotion. He tore off the last part and saw a… metal box? He knocked on it only to hear a hollow sound implying there was something inside.
Just as he was about to punch the top of it, Kiibo interrupted and grabbed his wrist hastily, “Whoa! Kokichi, just turn it around,” he took his hand off of his wrist, and despite Kiibo’s hand being cold, it felt like his wrist was on fire right now. The robot turned the invention around and now he could see what it was. Five labels named different types of soda, each one having a short knob sticking out. “I knew that,” Kokichi said blankly, still observing the gift.
“Holy shit,” His expression changed quickly once he realized what it was, flicking the knob under the grape flavor for a second just to see the sweet, purple liquid pour out. “This is so badass! Don’t tell Miu I said that, though, you know how she gets.” He grumbled, eying Kiibo out of the corner of his eye just to see him nod with a small smile on his face.
They continued to open the gifts one after another. There was a pillow with a checker pattern similar to his scarf, an oddly shaped lamp, and some ugly bug in a box with a note that read “take care of mantis :)”. Yeah hell no, he’ll just gift that back to Gonta later…
Kokichi quickly closed the box before the creepy, green insect jumped at him and set it aside on his desk. “I wouldn’t recommend getting attached to it,” Kiibo sighed solemnly beside Kokichi, still looking at the box with tiny holes poked into it. Kokichi was just about to question it, but he remembered seeing the robot spending an unusually long amount of time looking around in the grass outside last week. Which was kind of odd because Kiibo’s birthday was 8 months ago.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Kokichi replied with the full intent of not doing so. He stood up to stretch his legs before seeing the glittery gold stamp in the corner of his eye. A smile spread across his face as he quickly picked up the envelope laying neatly on his pillow.
“Kiiii-boy,” he grinned, dragging out the syllables and waving the paper in Kiibo’s face, “look what I have!”
Kiibo’s eyes widened, a nervous look on his face when his eyes focused on the somehow still pristine present. “Um, I’m not so sure about my gift anymore,” he darted his eyes to the side sheepishly, “After seeing everyone else’s, mine pales in comparison!” He covered his face with his hands as his face slightly reddened. Kokichi wasn’t even aware robots could blush, but now that he does he is definitely going to take advantage of it.
He ignored the faint twinge in his heart and laughed it off while he slid onto the bed, “I’m sure it’s fine. Plus, it can’t get any worse than the bug.” Kiibo cracked a small smile underneath his hands and slowly lowered them, looking directly at Kokichi.
He sighed, “I guess you’re right.” Kokichi felt giddy the moment the words left Kiibo’s lips and put his focus back on the gift in his hands. He felt nervous, which was weird because he rarely ever felt this anxious, and gently put his finger underneath the stamp, trying to remove it as carefully as possible. Slowly, the stamp began to lift unharmed and he saw the crisp white paper slipping out of the black envelope.
Pulling out the sheet slowly, Kokichi realized it was made of that fancy, slightly thicker paper. He set aside the envelope on his desk next to the bug-in-a-box and began to read what it said out loud.
“This voucher entitles Kokichi Ouma to one free favor from K1-B0”
Kokichi wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it wasn’t that. A card that said happy birthday with a little cartoon drawing in the corner? Yeah. A pamphlet on robophobia? Maybe. But this just seemed too good to be true! It was written in the nicest handwriting Kokichi had ever seen and there were miniature faux pearls glued to each corner–probably to make it look classy. It was kind of adorable.
He didn’t even notice he was staring until he felt the weight of the bed shift. Kiibo got up from his previous spot on the floor and now sat across from Kokichi. The supreme leader noticed his eyes flicking between the voucher and Kokichi warily, clearly trying not to make it too obvious (and failing).
Oh right. He hasn’t said anything.
“I love it,” Kokichi said breathily while simultaneously trying not to mix up any words, and he felt tears beginning to form in his eyes. He didn’t know why he treasured this gift so much. It was just a stupid piece of paper. He was supposed to laugh and call it worthless, maybe even an anti-robot comment for good measure. But it was from Kiibo . He knows sure as hell that no one else would trust him with a gift like this. He bets the robot didn’t even consider he’d use it for something malicious like seeing his dick.
“Rea-,” Kiibo looked up only to see small beads of tears running down his face. It wasn’t full-on sobbing, just him tearing up, but it was still cause for concern, “Kokichi! Are you okay?” He looked worried, eyes darting to the boy's hands already looking for a paper cut of some sort.
“Of course I am, idiot, can’t you tell these are happy tears,” Kokichi muttered, smiling as he read the paper once again. What was he going to use it for? Nothing weird…he’s not a freak like Miu. Maybe he should–no. But it would be nice…
Kiibo released a breath of relief that looked like it was being held for a while, “I am pleased to hear that! Feel free to use it for absolutely anything.” He grinned obliviously without even considering the possibilities he had just opened up for Kokichi. He couldn’t help but notice the ways his eyes shone brightly as he spoke.
“Anything?” Kokichi smirked teasingly, only wanting to mess with the robot. And it was worth it to watch the faintest blush spread across his cheeks, “W-well, technically no, but I didn’t think that would be an issue…”
Kokichi felt his heart soar. He really did trust him?! With…his body?!... Actually, he didn’t like the sound of that, it made him feel gross. It sounds like he and Kiibo were going to–
Nope. Stop.
He took a deep breath, his grip tightening on the voucher in his hand. Quickly, he thrust the paper towards Kiibo, shoving it into his chest. The robot gave him a confused look once again, “Kokichi?”
“I want,” Kokichi can’t believe he’s doing this. This is so humiliating, “I want a hug.”
Kiibo stared at him blankly. He’s probably processing why someone would make such a ridiculous request from a literal robot.
Who was he kidding, of course, Kiibo wasn’t thinking that. But thinking the worst is always better than actually trying to read his mind.
“Okay,” Kiibo smiled and just stretched out his arms. Kokichi one hundred percent did not expect this and he could not be happier at how wrong he was. Almost way too quickly, he leaped forward into the robot's arms, wrapping his arms around him in the process. Don’t judge him, he’s a touch-starved outcast–let him have this.
Despite Kiibo being made of literal metal, this was the most comfortable Kokichi has felt ever. He rested his head on his shoulder, Kiibo doing the same to him. Kokichi has never been more grateful that their height difference was only half of an inch. He can feel his surprisingly soft, white hair tickling his cheek gently. “Would you like me to turn on my heating function for maximum comfort?” He heard a soft voice say right into his ear.
“Hell yeah,” Kokichi mumbled, his cheek slightly smushed against Kiibo’s collar. Suddenly, warmth started to seep in where they were making contact, including the arms on his back. Kokichi couldn’t help but tighten his grip slightly. His heart was racing so fast he was worried Kiibo could feel it. God, he could stay like this forever.
“Hey, Kokichi?” He heard the calming voice say once again. He never realized how much he loved Kiibo’s voice until now. It felt like his ear was being bathed in sunlight and honey and everything happy. Especially when he says his name.
Yuck…what has this robot done to him.
“Yeah?” He responded just as softly as to not interrupt the moment. Kokichi doesn’t remember the last time his voice sounded so…unstrained.
“You know…you don’t have to use a voucher to hug me, right? I don’t mind,” His voice was such a whisper that Kokichi almost missed it. He felt his body heat up, not in the way it did when Kiibo turned on his heater, but in a way that he just suddenly felt very warm on the inside as well.
“Kiibo, I-” Kokichi blurted and then cut himself off instantly. He was not going to ruin this moment by saying something he would definitely beat himself up for later. He inhaled slowly, “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Kokichi couldn’t see it, but he could hear the smile in his voice.
He closed his eyes and sighed. Hell yeah, he was hugging a robot and the guy didn’t even care ! Best birthday ever.