"Morning Kiibo..."
The Ultimate Robot turned up to see Shuichi heading into the dining hall. The detective was still wearing his pajamas, hair a bit mussed up from sleep, or quite possibly, a lack thereof.
"Morning Shuichi." Kiibo greeted, watching as Shuichi seemed to fumble over the coffee machine. It took a few good minutes for Shuichi to apparently remember where the filters were and just how much ground coffee he should add, but soon enough, he sat himself at the table across from Kiibo.
"How did you sleep?"
Almost if on cue, Shuichi brought up a hand to cover his mouth as he yawned. "Not very well. I've been training with Kaito and Maki, which has been helping me get to sleep, but sleeping through the night is a different story."
"That's definitely not good..." Kiibo muttered. "To be fair I've noticed this has been happening more than once with you as well..."
"It's alright Kiibo, I'm used to getting less than amazing amounts of sleep..."
"But you shouldn't have to!"
Shuichi nearly fumbled with the cup in his hand at the sudden raised volume.
"My apologies." Kiibo said, thankfully in a lower tone of voice. "But seeing as you definitely need it, I'm designating today as a day for fostering your mental and emotional health!"
Shuichi couldn't help but laugh a little at the idea. But even so, the fact that Kiibo was this concerned about his lack of sleep spoke volumes on his priorities. It was actually kind of sweet to see him take charge.
"You mean you want me to spend a lazy day with you?" The detective asked, taking a sip of his coffee. "That actually sounds kind of fun."
"Perfect! After breakfast, let's go ahead and head to the gym. There's something I've been wanting to try."
Shuichi raised an eyebrow as he watched Kiibo turn to leave the dining hall. Did he have to set something up first? Though Kiibo did say that he was going to try and help him relax, Shuichi wasn't sure just what Kiibo had in mind.
"Might as well give it a chance..." Shuichi muttered to himself as he drained the rest of his coffee.
---
Shuichi managed to change into his usual school clothes before making his way over to the gym. The lights were brought down to a soft dim, and different sized candles were scattered around the room, wrapping the area in a pretty calm atmosphere.
"Kiibo?"
The robot in question turned to see Shuichi at the door. "Oh Shuichi! Perfect timing. I just finished lighting the last candle."
"I can see that... just what are you doing though?"
Kiibo tilted his head. "Well I researched the concept and traditions of meditation. Apparently it is a way to calm the mind and help clear someone from distractions. I thought perhaps we should give this a try and see if this can help."
Shuichi mentally breathed a sigh of relief. Though he was sure Kiibo said before he wouldn't dare expose himself to pornography or anything suggestive, Shuichi was worried if by some miscommunication from Miu, he was setting up something a little more inappropriate.
"I've taken the liberty of asking Angie for some plush sitting cushions for us to use." Kiibo said as he led Shuichi to the center of the room. Leading Shuichi to sit down on one of the pillows, Kiibo went ahead and sat down on the other pillow.
"Also I wasn't sure if you were comfortable with background music." He continued. "Did you want something specific Shuichi or do you prefer it when it's quiet?"
Shuichi hadn't really thought about it. And at the moment, he was kind of just overwhelmed with how much effort Kiibo was putting into all of this. "I think I'm good with no music." He finally answered.
With a nod, Kiibo moved to straighten his back as he sat up on the pillow, crossing his legs and getting himself comfortable. Shuichi couldn't help but smile at Kiibo's fidgeting, making sure to drop said smile when Kiibo's eyes darted back up to look at him.
"So if I'm correct about this, we close our eyes and concentrate on our breath." Kiibo reasoned. "I believe the goal is to get to a state where we're not thinking about anything and just existing in the moment."
Shuichi nodded. "Sounds about right. Might as well give it a try..." With that, the detective adjusted himself on the pillow, even shedding his shoes to avoid them digging into his knees when he crossed his legs. Giving a sigh, he sat up straight with his hands on his thighs and started to focus on his breathing, eyelids sliding shut as he tried to focus.
---
For a while, it seemed to be working. If he focused on his even inhales and exhales, his turbulent mind eventually mellowed out and he focused on just where he was in the moment. Shuichi wondered why this never seemed to work before for him, but perhaps it was just that because of his situation, he was willing to meditate with a classmate who just so happened to also be a robot.
A bit curious as to how Kiibo was doing, Shuichi opened one of his eyes just a tad to peek over at Kiibo.
The robot was perfectly still and silent, which was definitely concerning. What was even more concerning was that his eyes were dimmed to the point they looked blank. A slight panic flared in the back of Shuichi's mind. Was he meditating, or was he offline somehow?
"Hey Kiibo?"
...
No response.
Shuichi got up, his legs a bit sore from how much time had passed since he first sat down, and headed over to Kiibo. He grasped the robot's shoulders and gave him a light shake.
"Kiibo?"
...
Still nothing.
Now Shuichi was worried.
"Kiibo!"
In a flash, Kiibo's eyes activated and he yelled in alarm, falling onto his back, inadvertently bringing Shuichi with him to slam into his chassis. It was definitely uncomfortable to run into a robotic body, but at least Shuichi didn't bite his tongue.
"Shuichi, is something wrong? Are you okay?!" Kiibo fretted, his hands holding onto Shuichi's sides as he tried to bring himself back up to sit.
"I'm alright, but what about you Kiibo? You weren't saying a word for a good while..."
"Well I was meditating. I think I got lost when I started seeing flashes of ones and zeroes, but I'm okay all things considered." Kiibo reassured the detective. Shuichi nodded and gave a relieved sigh, glad that Kiibo hadn't hurt himself.
"I'm sorry Shuichi...but did the meditation help?"
To be honest, Shuichi kind of liked the meditation. It really gave him a chance to just not think for a few minutes. It was a great way to help clear his mind of everything, even for a few minutes. And to be fair, he was the one that overreacted to Kiibo. If anyone's to blame for the sudden heart attack, it was himself.
"It did...Thank you Kiibo." Shuichi said with a smile. "Though how about we go for a walk, get some fresh air?"
"Ah that sounds perfect!" Kiibo said, helping himself and Shuichi to their feet. "I just need a few moments to clean up, but I'd be glad to walk with you Shuichi."
As Kiibo set about to clean up the candles, Shuichi picked up the floor cushions and watched Kiibo move about the gym.
Everything he did was completely and utterly heartfelt. Kiibo always seemed to care about everyone's well-being, regardless if they teased him before, like Kokichi often did.
Shuichi smiled to himself as he thought about their walk later.
Perhaps he could thank Kiibo by holding his hand.
