There is something nice in walking through the empty streets of a city all by yourself. But it's all the nicer when you have a companion walking by your side. It's been a month now that Jun found and repaired Juto to be fully functional. The two androids are together ever since. Jun smiles at the thought of not being lonely anymore, when Juto stops in front of a building.
"What is it?" The shortie asks and looks up, the sign at the entrance says Grand Theatre. "Do you think they have a piano there?" The taller one asks. "One of those really big, professional ones." He spreads his arms wide as if to show how big he means, and there's some strange gleam in his eyes, which Jun can't categorize. It's something between excitement, hope and curiosity. "Only one way to find out." Jun smirks and drags his robotic friend inside.
The best thing about abandoned buildings is of course the fact that there's no restricted areas, and you can enter whichever room you please without being scolded for it. The two go snooping through the backstage and costume rooms, and finally they find what they're looking for. A huge, pitch black shiny piano in all its majesty, gathering dust in the middle of a dim room. Now when Jun glances at his tall friend, he's certain - the look on his face is pure excitement.
Juto approaches the impressive instrument, slides the hand across the case fallboard and opens it, revealing the ivory and ebony keyboard in perfect shape. "Can you play it?" Jun stands beside him. "Yes. I was programmed to play piano for entertainment purposes. I have a rich database of songs." He replies and taps the keys randomly. The notes echo through the room in a vibrant tone. "That's cool! Do you have a favorite song?"
"Yes. The one my master liked the most." He decides to play a quick piece, but comes to a halt soon after. "What's wrong?" Jun asks, as his friend looks visibly displeased. "This." Juto taps a key repeatedly. "The sound of my fingertips hitting against the key is annoying. It ruins the song." He pouts. He used to have neat silicon rubber coated hands before, so that the problem didn't exist. Now that he has a pair of standard metallic arms, the crude metal tapped loud enough to interfere with the clean notes of the piano. "Hmm... wait a minute." Jun leaves the room and comes back in a moment. "Try these." He hands Juto a pair of silky white gloves he found in the adjacent room. The tall blonde blinks and putst hem on, and when he hits some random keys, the gloves softly mute the unpleasant tapping from before. "Hah! This is fantastic! Thank you!" The android got all excited again, the other one grins wide.
"Wait!" Jun stops him, before he can play the piece from before. "I have an idea. Ever wanted to give a concert on a bigger scale?" He smiles mysteriously. "What do you mean?" Juto asks confused. "It'll take a while, but I'm sure it'll be worth it."
The preparations start.
The androids move the piano to the middle of the theatre scene, then clean it thoroughly from dust. They spend the next couple of hours by bringing in a DC generator to power up the electricity in the building, gather mannequins from the nearby stores, dress them and place in the theatre seats, enough to fill almost the whole room with makeshift audience. Juto decides to stylize one mannequin as his late master, and puts it in the front seat. Jun leaves the seat next to him empty, so that he can sit there when the time comes. It's already evening when everything is prepared, Jun even went as far as to whip up a remote to trigger applause sounds at the end of Juto's performance. Speaking of which, the tall android puts a black suit on, slicks his hair back and Jun attaches an artificial white rose to the vest. They high five and thumb up each other, the show is about to start.
The spotlights illuminate the scene. Jun takes his seat, and soon after, Juto enters the scene looking all professional and bows in front of the audience. He then sits in front of the piano, opens the fallboard and starts playing. The acoustic architecture aplifies the sound and carries it to every corner of the room. It was amazing. He played the piece that his master loved the most, his gloved hands moving fast and accurate like a seasoned performer. There was no off key. Juto glances to the side and smiles, when he sees the mannequin and a mesmerized Jun next to him. Drawn in that one of a kind atmosphere, he didn't want to stop at just one piece, so he played song after song. Quick, slow, cheerful, melancholic, epic in a long medley, each a favorite of his late master. And for a moment it felt like it was real. The event, the audience and especially him. For this one evening not an android, but a man of flesh and bone, pouring his soul in the instrument, each note carrying a memory and joy of living.
The show went on until late in the night.
And when the last note echoed through the room and everything went silent Juto stands up, makes a few steps to the front and bows. The room is filled again, but this time with the sound of excited ovation. Juto closes his eyes and spreads the arms to bask in the glory. Jun climbs the scene and jumps in his friend's arms.
"It was impressive man! I'd say breathtaking if I could actually breathe." They laugh. "Thank you for this." Juto says with genuine joy. "You were right, Jun. It was worth it." They turn to the still clapping audience and wave at the mannequins. "I wish he was here to enjoy it with us." Says the taller android as his eyes glance at the makeshift master.
"If what they said about afterlife is true... maybe he did." Says the smaller robotic friend. Juto, the star of one evening smiles gently.
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