Chapter Text
"When they do it... sometimes they get a baby," Roboppi stated quietly. "I wish we could have a baby."
Ai was taken aback by the sudden statement. He regarded his lover in his arms - Roboppi was such a pretty girl, with her short blue hair and curious golden eyes - a stark, complimentary contrast to his own dark hair and piercing golden eyes. He felt such a strong connection with her - desperate to protect her, to give her whatever she wanted or needed. Even if it annoyed him, deep down he knew he was dedicated to making her happy and making her existence worthwhile.
"Babies are a burden," he explained to her with a sigh, kissing the side of her neck, caressing the petite body he'd just made love to. "You have to teach them everything, look after them constantly-"
"Like you did with me when we met!" she giggled. He frowned.
"Jeez, you make me sound like a pedophile when you put it that way." He was quite a bit older than her, in terms of being computer programs. But they both had the rights and capabilities of any adult human. "It's more than that. At least for humans... though I'm also guessing a human baby isn't really what you had in mind."
Roboppi shook her head, putting her arms around his neck, looking in his eyes. "What if we... made a baby? But not exactly a baby... A child, I guess."
Ai envisioned a second Roboppi running around, equally as energetic as her but sharing his physical traits and features. The thought alone made him lose energy.
"Let's go to sleep, Boppi." He kissed her good night, and turned off the side table lamp.
Ai liked paying surprise visits to the apartment of the boy whose personality he was split from, in that experiment eleven years ago. Yuusaku Fujiki, seventeen years old, did not feel as enthusiastic about being dropped in on. He liked Ai, but treasured his own alone time more.
"What do you want? I have homework," Yuusaku stated plainly. "University entrance exams are coming up, and I'm going to blame you if I don't get in."
Ai scoffed. "Like a smart-ass boy like you would be able to fail."
The blue-haired boy stared at the much taller android with a blank expression. Ai sighed.
"Look, I need your genius advice. But don't let this get out."
"Have you ever known me to spill secrets?"
Ai entered the apartment, kicking off his boots as the boy hurried to the kitchen. Yuusaku made himself a pot of tea, politely pouring a cup for Ai although he knew the android couldn't drink. He sat down at the kitchen table across from the slender, middle-aged appearing android and waited for him to be the first to speak.
"Roboppi wants a baby."
Yuusaku nearly choked on his tea. "O-okay. And what do you need my advice with?"
"You built her, right? I mean... when she was a cleaning robot. Before the SOLtiS body."
"Of course, but I used a guide book and purchased a kit. It's not like I made her from scratch." He eyed the homework on the other side of the table. "If I could do something like that, I'd probably be in university already."
Ai stretched out, slumping back in his chair and looking up at the ceiling. "So then what? Can you just make another Roboppi and stick her programming into an android? But make her personality more like mine. Appearance, too."
A small smile crept onto Yuusaku's face. "Her? Roboppi wants a daughter?"
Ai's face flushed, his systems overheating just a tad at all the thoughts that raced through his mind. "The gender doesn't matter! She didn't specify."
The teenager got up, going to his room to look through his stack of books. Upon returning, he handed Ai the guidebook on how Roboppi was built.
"Anyway, I'm not going to do it for you. This book can give you some basics, then maybe you can go to the library or look for more help online."
"I'm not taking it home, or she'll get the idea to try it by herself."
"Fine," Yuusaku huffed. He scooted his textbooks over to in front of him at the table, flipping one open to a marked page. "Read it here. But I'm going to study now, and you better not bother me anymore."
Ai and Roboppi were at the store, picking up more cleaning supplies to keep their apartment tidy. True to her roots as a cleaning robot, she still loved to clean, and Ai was more than happy to not have to live in a dingy apartment like Yuusaku's.
The couple passed a human couple with a baby in the seat of the cart. The baby smiled at Roboppi, moving his arm in an attempt to wave hello. Roboppi leaned in, cooing at the baby and chatting briefly with the parents before they went their separate ways. She returned to Ai's side and held his hand, looking up at him.
Her face showed a bit of a sad look, a yearning look. She didn't say anything, but he really began to understand just how important this was to her.
"You really want this baby." Ai stated. Roboppi was busy cleaning up the living room of their apartment while he laid on the couch, channel surfing.
She nodded in agreement. "I want to know what it feels like to raise and teach someone everything."
"It's a hell of a lot of work, Boppi."
"I still want to."
He waited for her to finish her cleaning and join him on the couch. He sat up so she could have room to seat herself, and stroked her hair.
"Do you want a daughter or a son?"
"Eh!?" She seemed a bit shocked at the question, whirling around to face Ai. "I never thought about it... I don't really care, I guess. I would love them no matter what. Like how I love you."
The following Friday night, he showed up again unannounced at Yuusaku's apartment. The boy watched dumbfounded as the android unloaded boxes and boxes into his apartment, followed by bags of various tools.
"Why are you invading my apartment?"
"Well, Yuusaku, my girlfriend needs a baby."
"Okay. Why are you invading my apartment?"
A look of indignation crossed Ai's face. "I want to surprise her! She can't know anything about this!" He tossed Yuusaku a wad of cash. "Think of this as a bribe. I'll pay your rent as long as this takes me."
Yuusaku rolled his eyes, but accepted the money. "I don't suppose you're going to let me get any sleep tonight."
"Nope!" He thought for a moment, then dug out another wad of cash. "Why don't you go to a hotel. Or head to my apartment and pay Boppi a visit. I know she misses you. Just don't tell her you saw me!"
"Sure. I won't tell her you're pregnant." Yuusaku retorted, quickly grabbing his wallet and coat - swiftly exiting before Ai could snap back.