Summary: Ichigo Kurosaki, a young doctor that keeps to himself. Inoue Orihime, a girl that gets caught up in an accident and loosing her memory. Together they go on the journey of getting her memory back only to face her dark pasts that continue to torment her.
Disclaimer: This is where I claim that I don't own Ichigo or Orihime. I don't own Bleach or their feelings in the matter, Kubo-sensei does~ I do not hereby claim this as my own or will make profit from it, this is all just a form of entertainment to kill my boredom. XD
Notes: Thanks to everyone who reviewed the first chapter XD~ You're like my angels and I love you all~ This is the second chapter, obviously and like I promised; a chapter a day. :X It doesn't really matter to me who reviews and who doesn't. I just appreciate the interest in this story that I still have and I hope not to disappoint you in the future. But enough about me. Hope you enjoy the next chapter! :'3
Temptations / Chapter 2 / ; Silver Stars
Patience is the ability to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay.
He knew the definition of patience but it didn't apply to him. In all the years of his life he had never been patient. Not when he had been a kid, not when he had been a teenager and definitely not as an adult. He was one to want answers right away; he never did like to wait.
Tapping his fingers impatiently against his forearm, both of his arms crossed over his chest, he let his feet shuffle underneath him as he paced back and forth in the hallway. He had lost track of time since the woman had been wheeled into the room. Her pained face was engraved into his mind. He couldn't forget her face no matter how hard he tried. All the blood on her face and body, it was slowly torturing him. He silently hoped that she made it through the surgery.
Shaking his head, he scowl deepened as his brown eyes opened slightly. He shouldn't doubt the surgery; his father was one of the best surgeons in Japan. He didn't need to worry, the woman would make it. She had to. He had been the first one to properly analyze her...if she didn't survive, then it would be all of his fault.
"Doctor Kurosaki," his eyes fully opened as he stopped pacing to turn around and see a nurse, staring up at him with concerned eyes.
"What is it?' Ichigo asked, uninterested in whatever she had to say. His mind was on the young woman and nothing else. He wondered why he was so worried about her. She was just another victim patient. She would be fine. There was no reason to stress himself over it. She had been covered in blood; she could have hit her head but she couldn't have any brain damage because her pupils hadn't been dilated.
"U-Um...maybe you should sit down. You've been pacing back and forth for over an hour," she suggested which made Ichigo's eyes darken.
"Go finish your charts and mind your own damn business," Ichigo snapped which made the nurse's eyes widen as she jumped in surprise.
"Y-Yes sir," she replied before she ran away as he let out an aggravated sigh.
He should be ashamed of himself. The nurse didn't deserve to get snapped at - she hadn't done anything wrong. He made a mental note to apologize for his behavior later. He hoped that she wouldn't go around and tell anyone what he had done. Nurses gossiped just like old church ladies and if it got around... He didn't even want to think about that. If his father got wind of it, he was going to get pummeled to the ground and his father would go on and on about how he broke girls' hearts.
"Ichigo!" The young doctor didn't have time to react as something elbowed him into the ribs, making him yell out in pain. "How can you treat a beautiful girl like that? I thought I raised you better than that!" The voice continued as an arm wrapped around Ichigo's throat, pulling him close as the younger man tried to pry himself away from his father's death grip.
"Would you get the hell off of me?" Ichigo yelled in response as he pulled his father's arm away from his throat, quickly pulling it behind him as he kicked his father in the back which sent the surgeon to the ground. "You don t just jump your own son! How is that professional?"
"Daddy didn't mean to hurt you," Isshin said, getting up as he rubbed the his lower back. "You should learn not to treat women like that. It's a disgrace! I expect you to apologize to the poor nurse later on. Who knows what she is doing now? She's probably crying her eyes out wondering why Ichigo-kun is being so mean..." His voice trailed off as he glanced at his fuming son.
"Whatever," Ichigo breathed as he crossed his arms, averting his gaze from his father's, "How did it go?" he asked, hoping to get positive results.
"How did what go?"
"The surgery, dammit!" Ichigo yelled, his eyes widening in anger as a vein popped out on his forehead in annoyance.
"Ah, the auburn beauty? It went better than we thought it would," Ichigo let out a breath that he had been holding. "She's resting peacefully right now...just like an angel. You did good, son. Her breathing was regulated by the time we got her in the operating room," Isshin said as he placed his hand on his Ichigo's shoulder, his eyes filled with pride. "Care to see the life that you saved?"
"...Yeah," Ichigo replied as he stuck his hands into the side pockets of his pants, following his father down the hill towards the room that held the woman that both of them had saved.
"...and he was all, "Go finish your charts and mind your own damn business." and he had that ugly scowl on. I swear that he was going to attack me! I was just worried because he had been pacing for lord knows how long. If only he was more like Kurosaki-san...he would be so much more likable. I mean, last Christmas Kurosaki-san invited me over for dinner but before I could reply to the invitation, Doctor Kurosaki had dragged him away,"
"Who's being rude?" a voice interrupted the gossip making the group of nurses squeal and jump in surprise as they turned around to see a small woman with her back leaning against the wall with her small arms crossed over her chest.
She was shorter than most girls with short raven hair that layered right at the top of her shoulders with one bang that fell between a pair of violet eyes. The pair of black slacks and light blue shirt that she wore clung to her small figure as a name tag was pinned to the left side of her shirt.
"Ah, we were talking about...Doctor Kurosaki," one of the nurses answered as the group of girls watched the woman laugh softly as she pushed herself off of the wall, uncrossing her arms.
"Doctor Kurosaki... The striking good looking man that has a tolerance level of a five year old. What did he do now?" she asked, her eyes brightening as if she was eager to get the scoop on what had gone on with the doctor.
"Ms. Kuchiki, he was so rude...I was just trying to help. There's this new patient. I saw her myself because she had to go into surgery. The entire time, Doctor Kurosaki was pacing like it was the end of the world or something. When I told him that maybe he should sit down, he snapped at me for no reason!" the nurse exclaimed, hurt flashing across her eyes.
"Oh? There's a new patient. She must be from that hit-and-run that happened on Hiboshi street," Rukia replied, tapping her index finger against her chin in thought.
The nurses watched her as Rukia turned away from them, walking away slowly. Each of them looked at each other with confused expressions as they continued their gossip on the young doctor and the reason on why he was acting so harsh.
Beautiful wouldn't be the word to describe her. Gorgeous...alluring...fascinating. No words could come up in his mind that could define her beauty. He hadn't realized just how young and good looking this girl was; he had been focused on saving her life but now that he got a good look at her sleeping form...he couldn't take his eyes off of her.
Her skin was back to its normal tone, still a bit pale but she looked healthier. Her copper hair fell around down her shoulders, her bangs covering her closed eyes as her chest raised up and down slowly. He didn't care about the bandages that covered her forehead or how her arm was in a cast. She looked like an angel that was sent from heaven itself.
Staring at her for a bit longer, his eyes widened as he realized what he was doing. Shaking his head, he turned to glance at his father who stood by him with his arms crossed. He was staring at Ichigo with a big grin on his face as if this whole situation was amusing to him.
"What are you smiling about, old man?" Ichigo muttered, trying to keep his voice down so he wouldn't wake the sleeping girl.
"You were staring at her..." Isshin observed as his grin grew which made Ichigo start to feel uncomfortable. Every time his father smiled or got excited over something it was never in Ichigo's best interest.
"I was not," Ichigo argued, averting his eyes from his father as a small blush stretched across his cheeks as he closed his eyes. He was not fixing to have this discussion with his father – he refused.
"She is a beautiful woman...and she'll need a capable doctor to handle her..." Isshin's voice trailed off as Ichigo clenched his fist, "Alright, son...she's yours."
Ichigo's eyes snapped open as he turned to gawk at his father that had a clipboard in his hands as he overlooked the papers which probably was the girl's information.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Ichigo asked, "You can't just spring this on me-" Ichigo was interrupted by his father's smile turning into a smirk.
"I could always ask Renji to be her doc-" Isshin was interrupted by Ichigo growling as he grabbed the clipboard away from his father.
"Give me the damn clipboard, I'll do it," Ichigo grumbled, glaring at his father.
"Well said, my son. Do me a favor and try not to kill her," Isshin replied which made Ichigo scowl as the surgeon walked out of the room, waving his hand as to say goodbye.
"Damn him..." Ichigo swore as he glanced down at the paper that held all her information. Pressing his finger against the paper, he let it glide down until it stopped right on her name.
Orihime Inoue...huh? Ichigo thought as he read more over her information. He knew that his father had something up his sleeve. He had an uneasy feeling in the deepest part of his gut and usually when he had that feeling, it was never good.
"Family members are so persistent...I tell them the reason and they ask why another hospital didn't tell them that. How the hell am I supposed to know? I don't work at that hospital," he grumbled as he made his way down the hallway, his pants in the side pockets of his faded jeans.
Pulling his hands out of his jeans and rolling the white sleeves of his lab coat to his elbows, he wondered where that new patient was and if she had survived the surgery. It had gone all around the hospital about some auburn haired beauty and he wanted to see the girl himself.
Tch...this is unfair. How come Ichigo got to help the girl out? Where was I when the ambulance had come? Oh yeah...I was with the damn persistent family that doesn't have hearing, he thought as he let out a heavy sigh, not wanting to get to his next patient.
Rubbing his eyes to get rid of the drowsiness that was trying to overcome him, he decided to go ahead and check on the new patient. Isshin had done the surgery so she was bound to survive it.
"Renji, there you are!" the doctor turned around, sticking his hands back in his pockets as he saw Isshin running up to him with a grin on his face.
Speak of the devil, Renji thought as he gave a small wave with his hand, letting the surgeon know that he had heard him.
"How did it go with the Massino's? What did they say? Will they give it a go for the surgery?" Isshin asked, his eyebrows furrowing as he awaited Renji's answer.
"They said they have to think about it. They're so damn stubborn. They kept complaining about the other hospital that they had gone to...that they didn't recommend this surgery. I really don't know why and I almost lost my cool with them," Renji replied, his eyes darkening as he remembered the woman that had gotten into his face. They better had be grateful that he had gone to anger management before he became a doctor.
"I see... We'll just have to wait for their answer, then. Have you seen Rukia around? I was planning on inviting her to dinner tonight but nobody has seen her around," Isshin said, stroking his beard in thought.
"Nope, haven't seen her since lunch when she threatened to castrate me," Renji replied, dryly as his lips formed into a scowl.
"Still threatening you, I see. Well, if you see her, tell her what I said," Isshin told him as he placed his hand on the man's shoulder, giving him a grin as he walked down the hallway.
Renji scoffed as he turned back around. He wouldn't see Rukia later. He was avoiding her at all costs. Ever since he had refused to buy her lunch and she threatened to castrate him, he wasn't too keen on seeing her again.
Shaking his head, he wondered why he put up with her. Probably because they had grown up together... Yeah, that was probably it.
Deciding to just check his last patient and go home, Renji walked further down the hallway only to notice that a door was cracked open.
Raising an eyebrow, he stopped to check it out. He cursed himself for being nosy just like Rukia but he couldn't help himself as he placed his hand on the door, pushing it open a bit to peer inside and what he saw was something that he didn't think he would ever see again.
Ichigo scratched the back of his head as he sat down in the chair that stood right by her bed. Propping his elbow on the armrest as he leaned his cheek on his hand, he continued to watch her. He wondered when she would wake up. A couple days...a week. He would give it a couple of days since she had just gotten out of surgery, but maybe she would surprise him.
He sighed as he shook his head, wondering what was wrong with him. She was just a patient, he shouldn't be watching her. He shouldn't still be in the room but he couldn't help himself. It was like she was begging him to stay in here with her. He didn't mind; it was better than heading home to get ready for dinner with his family. He wasn't ready to deal with another one of his dad's lessons.
Without thinking, he moved his hand away from his face and brushed her bangs out of her face with his fingertips. The bandage on her forehead needed to be re-bandaged but his thoughts on her wound quickly disappeared when he felt her soft her skin actually was. It was like touching a delicate flower and he removed his hand quickly, his cheeks growing hot.
What the hell is wrong with me? Why am I so flustered over this girl? She's just a patient, dammit...just a patient, Ichigo told himself as he closed his eyes, bringing his hand back to his face. His fingers still burned from her touch and it confused him even more. He had met beautiful women...tons of them. All the nurses here were attractive but he never did feel anything towards them. He wondered why this girl was different.
"I never would of thought someone like you would do that...I guess Rukia was right when she said that somewhere deep, deep down inside that ice cold thing you call a body lies a heart," Ichigo's eyes snapped open as he jerked around quickly only to have his chair lose balance and fall over backwards.
Renji winced as a crash sounded, signaling that the chair had hit the floor and had brought Ichigo down with it.
"W-W-What the hell are you doing here, Renji?" Ichigo demanded, getting up as his face rose in three different shades of red.
"I came to check out this new patient that all the nurses keep talking about and I see you here watching her like you're her lover or something," Renji replied, his lips forming into a smirk as Ichigo's face went another different shade of red.
"L-l-lover? What the hell are you talking about? I was just watching her. She's my patient, you bastard," Ichigo said, his eyes darkening as his fingers tightened around the clipboard that was still in one of his hands.
"How the hell did you get such a hot patient? All I get is old men and their families!" Renji complained which made Ichigo scoff before his lips turned into a devilish smirk.
"Old men suit you Renji," Ichigo told his co-worker as Renji growled, clenching his fists.
"What was that, you tangerine?"
"Tangerine? Don't even talk, you obsessed tattoo freak! The reason you get old men is because you scare the hell out of women and their children!"
"WHAT?" Renji roared as Ichigo set the clipboard on the chair, both of them rolling up their sleeves as they glowered at each other.
"You came at a good time, Renji. I've been wanting to pummel someone all day," Ichigo told him with an evil grin forming on his lips as Renji laughed, darkly.
"Let's go, tangerine."
"Don't call me that!" Ichigo yelled but before the two men could attack each other, there was a sigh and a hand hit Renji over the head, making the crimson haired doctor howl in pain as he grabbed his head in pain.
"Idiots," Ichigo put his fist down as he grimaced at who entered the room, "You two are still loud as ever."
"What the hell are you doing here? This isn't the break room. Scram," Ichigo ordered, his eyes narrowing down at Rukia but she was no longer in front of him. Glancing around, he found her standing by Orihime with her hand behind her back and her face was only a few inches away from the girl's face.
"Hey! Just what do you think you're doing, Rukia?' Ichigo demanded in a whisper as she turned to him with a smirk on her face.
"So this is the reason that you were all stressed and moody in the hallway!" Rukia whispered back, smirking even more as Ichigo blinked a couple times before scoffing and turning his eyes from her.
"What the hell are you talking about? I was not stressed," Ichigo argued but Rukia put her finger in the air, shaking it as if she was fixing to prove him wrong.
"I heard that you snapped at the poor nurse...something along the lines of..."Go finish your charts and mind your own damn business." Ichigo, that's so harsh. No wonder you can't find a woman," Rukia said as Ichigo put a hand over his eyes.
Damn those nurses. Can't keep anything to themselves. Why can't people keep their damn mouths shut? Ichigo thought.
"Anyway, you need to get some control. Who's the doctor of this girl?" Rukia asked, placing her hand on her hips.
"I am," Ichigo answered, dryly as he picked up the clipboard that he had set down. He was going to put the papers in his office and finish up tomorrow. He was tired and ready to go home.
"You're her doctor? She's going to die," Rukia said, bluntly as her eyes widened which made Ichigo's lips form into a scowl.
"Who asked you? I'm not the one that threatens my patients," Ichigo told her which made her huff, making her turn around as she crossed her arms.
"Sometimes drastic times call for drastic measures and-" Rukia was interrupted by a soft groan which made all three of them glance at the occupied bed.
Ichigo cursed himself for being loud. He had completely forgotten that he was still in the room with her. Damn both Rukia and Renji for trying to get under his skin.
"I think she's waking up..." Rukia observed which made Renji walk up to where her and Ichigo stood, looking over Ichigo's shoulder.
"No shit, she just made a groan. Ichigo you're too loud. Rukia was right, you need to learn to control yourself-" Renji was interrupted as Ichigo elbowed him in the face, sending him to the floor in pain.
"Shut your mouth," Ichigo whispered as he watched his patient open her eyes to reveal the most beautiful pair of gray eyes that he had ever seen.