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: So...freaking...tired .-. I think my head is tilting side ways while writing this... I need a freaking vacation haha. Okay, well, next chapter is here just like I promised... so give me a cookie? haha, oh I'm an oatmeal cookie now o.O; My little sister said we were tough cookies and she proclaimed herself as chocolate chip. DX; how dare she. I'm the sweet one! DD: Naw, but I'm oatmeal. XD; How uh...interesting. I like oatmeal so it's all goooood. Random but... that's coppy for you. Anyways hope you enjoy the chapter! :'D

Temptations /Chapter 6/ ; Knocking On Wood

"What?" The petite woman shrieked as she clutched the book tightly. Her violet eyes were wide with disbelief as her lips were slightly parted in shock. This couldn't be happening. It was impossible. "How can this be? I was sure that he liked Tomoya and not Fumi! This..." her voice trailed off as she flipped the page only to slam her manga against the surface of her desk. "I cannot accept this!" she yelled in anger as she crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance.

Propping her feet on her desk, she crossed her ankles with a huff as she closed her eyes. She needed to control her emotions. Surely he couldn't like Fumi. Tomoya had already declared her love for him and still he was looking the other way. The wrong way!

"Ridiculous," Rukia muttered as she opened her eyes slightly, her eyes brimming with tears. "Tomoya has always been by his side, no matter what, she always stayed by his side and Fumi just came into his life. How could he be so stupid and not realize that Tomoya is the one for him?" she questioned as she felt her anger rising.

"Oi," the voice came out of nowhere and it made the young therapist look up to see her door opening to reveal a orange-haired man walking through with a scowl engraved on his face.

"Have you ever heard of knocking?" she asked as a vein appeared on her forehead. She did not want to associate herself with anyone at the moment especially the short-tempered doctor that caused trouble everywhere he went.

"I don't knock," was his reply and it made her roll her eyes.

"You need to learn. One day you're going to get in trouble by it and I'm not going to be there to help pull you out," Rukia told him as she lifted her legs off of her desk, dropping them to the floor as she propped her elbows on the surface of her desk, her chin leaning against her hands. "It's not hard really. All you have to do is put your hand against the door and beat it...gently. Knowing you, you might break the door down."

"Shut up. I didn't come here to get lectured by someone that's shorter than me," Ichigo replied, flatly as he narrowed his brown eyes at her.

"Do you want to get pummeled? I may be short but I can cause pain very quickly," Rukia said as she smirked up at her friend.

"Whatever. I need to talk to you," Ichigo made his way towards her and planted himself in one of the leather chairs that sat in front of her desk. "It's about my patient."

"I'm not helping you until you ask nicely." Rukia responded, grabbing her manga as leaned back against her chair, propping her feet back up on her desk. She sat the manga gently in her lap and Ichigo felt his eye twitch as she started to read thus ignoring him.

"Don't be a bitch, Rukia," he said as the petite woman in front of him turned a page, still ignoring him. "Rukia..." Ichigo growled in annoyance at how immature his co-worker was being. These actions of hers were normal but he was not in the mood to deal with her childish attitude at the moment. "Don't ignore me."

Rukia replied by opening her mouth to let a yawn escape as she turned the page which caused the short-tempered doctor to grit his teeth in annoyance.

Clenching his fists that lay on his knees, he quickly stood up and grabbed the manga that was in her hands. She let out a gasp as he closed the book with a loud noise and dropped it to her desk. "Listen here, I didn't come here to be ignored. I have some important things to go over with you that have to deal with my patient and your job."

"...and didn't I tell you that I'm not helping you at all until you ask nicely. You can't just barge in and demand assistance. You may not have a girlfriend that keeps you in line but I'll go to hell before I let you do what you want," Rukia replied dryly as she grabbed her manga but a hand planted itself on top of hers.

Violet eyes narrowed at brown eyes as a line of electricity sparked between them. "Let go of my manga," Rukia told him as her voice grew deeper. She wasn't going to play around when it came to her manga.

"Not until you do your job," Ichigo told her, refusing to back down. He wasn't one to run away from a fight and he definitely was not going to let the woman in front of him, that was glaring at him murderously, have her way.

Rukia pressed her lips together tightly as she put her other hand on Ichigo's hand which caused the young doctor to place his free hand on hers.

"You're such a jerk," Rukia said as Ichigo kept his gaze on her and she let her lips turn upward into a small smirk. "Fine, I'll help you," she agreed.

As Ichigo grinned, his grin disappeared as quick as it had reappeared when Rukia's hand came in contact with his face causing him to let go of her manga and fall right back down in the chair that he had placed himself in just moments earlier.

"What the hell, Rukia?" Ichigo yelled, angered at the fact that she had slapped him.

"That's what you get for placing your impure hands on my dear manga," Rukia replied as she grabbed the manga and glided her fingers across the cover as if she was wiping dust off of it. "Are you alright? I'm sorry that I have such a reckless, ignoramus and deficient friend that handled you in such a way. I hope you will forgive me..." Rukia's voice trailed off as she hugged the manga to her chest as if it was a person that she was taking care of.

"Give me a break," Ichigo muttered as Rukia placed the book in her bag and propped her elbows on the surface of her desk, leaning her chin on her hands with a frown stretching across her lips.

"Now, what is so important about this patient and it better be good for you acting the way you did."

"Acting the way I did? You were the one-" Ichigo interrupted himself as Rukia gave him a glare of ultimate death which caused him to sigh heavily. "Whatever. I just need you to run some tests on my patient. I think that she may have amnesia. She can't seem to remember anything dealing with the past. When I told her name to her, she was surprised. Well, maybe surprised isn't the word but she didn't know what her name was. Since you're a therapist and it's your job to do this kind of stuff, I was wondering if you could help me out and do it first thing tomorrow," Ichigo finished as his eyes grew serious.

"I've never seen you so serious about a patient. It's scary," Rukia said as she leaned back in her chair with her arms crossed.

"Would you shut up? No one asked for your comments, dammit. I'm always serious when it comes to my patients," Ichigo replied, dryly as his eyes narrowed. If there was someone that was as bad as his father when it came to meddling into other people's business, preferably his, it was Rukia.

"Maybe it's a good thing that she doesn't remember anything."

Rukia's response surprised Ichigo as his eyes grew wide. He wasn't expecting that out of Rukia. He didn't understand her words. Not remembering your past or anyone that was linked to it was a good thing? He had seen the torment that the girl was having to go through. She didn't know any of her family, none of her friends. There was no proof that she existed in this city and for some reason, her tears and the trembling of her voice, worried him.

"What are you talking about? Memories are important. It's what makes the person what they are," Ichigo said, whispering the last part as he looked down, his eyes softening. Memories were what made people. Memories of good times and bad times. He didn't understand how losing your memory could be a good thing.

"I wonder if you could get her to fall in love with you. She's really good-looking. It might just work if another man doesn't sweep her off her feet but your charm isn't really... How do I say it? Charming?" Rukia said as she tapped her chin thoughtfully, her eyes growing intense.

Ichigo's eyebrow twitched as Rukia went on muttering things to herself like he wasn't in front of her. He hated it when people talked about him as if he wasn't around. It really pissed him off.

"Would you give it a rest? I'm not here to charm people. This is my job and I refuse to be a part of one of your stupid schemes," Ichigo said as he stood up, turning around to walk out the door but the sound of laughter rang through his ears.

Daring to glance behind him, he saw that Rukia had a smile on her face. "Just what are you smiling about?" he demanded, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll go see her tomorrow morning. You're so easy to rile up. So easy that sometimes it takes out the fun of trying to get you upset," Rukia told him and Ichigo replied by storming out and slamming the door behind him.

"Ichigo. Ichigo. You're falling for her and you don't even realize it," Rukia murmured as silence enveloped the room. She clapped her hands excitedly as she stood up, her eyes sparkling with emotion. Yes, things finally were going to get interesting.

A scream echoed through the large house as the sound of a slap was heard and there was crying afterwards.

"You brat! I wish you would of died along with your mother. You're useless!" a yell came out as another sound of a slap was heard and then a sound of whimpering. "You can't take the pain huh? You're stupid just like your mother! I guess I didn't kick her hard enough...damn. If I had, maybe you wouldn't of been born and I wouldn't have to deal with you! You're a mistake and a waste of my time."

"D-Daddy..." the whimpering continued as a small hand reached out towards the man that was currently abusing her. "I'm sorry for making a mess. I...tripped and grabbed the tablecloth on accident. I-I'm sorry," the child apologized as tears fell down and stained her pale cheeks. Her cheeks were red not from crying but from the slaps that the man in front of her had given her. Her lip was busted as blood dripped down her chin and one of her eyes was slowly turning black.

"Sorry? Sorry is all that you can say? That's what your mother said all the time. That's what she said when she died and left me with something that is not even useful," the older man said as the child in front of him let tears roll down her cheeks. Her auburn hair wasn't long but cut in odd ways as if someone had attacked her with a pair of scissors.

"Get out of my sight," he ordered and the child nodded slowly as she turned to crawl away. She couldn't stand up because she had tripped and somehow her leg wouldn't work. An adult would know that her leg was broken but the child didn't have a clue. All she knew was that she had upset her father and that was unforgivable.

"I told you to get out of my sight. You're not moving fast enough," her father said as he grabbed her arm and there was a cry of pain as he dragged her back towards her room.

Opening her eyes slightly, she felt wetness on her cheeks which caused her eyes to open fully in alarm. She hadn't realized that she had been crying and as her fingertips touched her cheeks, she felt the tears freely flowing.

Why... Why am I crying? It was just a dream. A dream of a child and her father abusing her. Why am I dreaming of something like that? Orihime questioned as she used her fingers to wipe away her tears as she sniffed. She shouldn't be crying over something small like a dream. She felt as if she knew the man that was abusing the small girl but his face was still blurry. The only thing that she could catch glimpses were his dark brown hair and glasses. Perhaps it was a good thing that she didn't know the man. He looked violent, someone that would cause pain just for his own enjoyment.

"So, you're finally awake."

The voice caused the auburn beauty to squeal in surprise as she flinched, looking to her left to see the person sitting in the chair was someone that she had never seen before. She had only talked to the two men that looked like they were about to beat each other but the woman in front of her caused her to feel at ease. Her violet eyes had a gentleness to them and her porcelain skin was like the moon reflecting off of her skin. Her black hair hung right at her shoulders, the layers falling past them and one bang fell in the middle of her eyes. She looked beautiful and didn't look like she belonged in the hospital.

"I'm sorry to alarm you. My name is Kuchiki Rukia and I'm this hospital's therapist or that's what they like to call me," the woman gave her a gentle smile as she leaned forward, propping her elbows on her legs that were folded underneath her petite body. She didn't look stiff or out of place, sitting in the chair. She looked comfortable as if she were at home, watching television. "You're Inoue Orihime, right or that's what Mister I-know-it-all says."

"Mister I-know-it-all?" Orihime asked, confused. She had no idea who the young woman was talking about.

"Your doctor. That brainless nut that has a short fuse. The one with the abnormal orange hair? I told him one time that he could get a job being a stop light and he didn't talk to me for a whole week. He's idiotic but he can hold grudges," Rukia explained as she let out a sigh and leaned back in the chair, resting her arms on the armrests. "In my opinion, you're beautiful. You're the perfect match for Mister I-don't-have-feelings-because-I-want-to-be-cool. What do you say?"

"M-Match?" Orihime stuttered, her cheeks turning pink. The young doctor with orange hair suddenly invaded her mind and his soft smile made her heart flutter. That had been the first time that he had smiled in front of her and she couldn't help but feel at ease about it.

"He's reckless. No sense of humor and has a tolerance of a four year old," Rukia went on as a smile stretched across her lips. "Well, you probably knew that already. I heard him and Renji had a little fight here in this room. Idiots. They are always at each other's throats for no particular reason."

"I thought that they had wanted to hurt each other..." Orihime murmured as she looked back down at her sheets, wondering why they were talking about her doctor and the other doctor that had tattoos as eyebrows.

"They're always like that. Anyways, you're wasting your breath if you try to stop them. They always fight and I mean always," Rukia said, shaking her head.

"How do you know Abarai-san?" Orihime asked, causing Rukia to glance at her as she leaned back in the chair, crossing her arms over her chest.

"We kind of grew up together. I first met him when I was a freshman in high school. He was such a hot-headed man back then, hell, he still is pretty hot-headed. Just like your carrot-top. I swear that they could be related..." Rukia's voice trailed off as she pulled a bottle of water from the bag that she had brought with her. "First time I met Renji, I threatened to castrate him."

"C-Castrate?" Orihime blurted out, eyes wide in horror.

"Don't be so surprised. Renji and I deal with each other like that," Rukia explained and she was caught off guard as Orihime's softened and a warm smile fell on her lips. "What?" she asked as she took a drink from her bottle.

"It sounds like you're in love with Abarai-san..."

Rukia suddenly spit out her water, choking on it.

"K-Kuchiki-san! Ah, I'm sorr-" Orihime was interrupted by the sound of a knock against her door and both of them looked towards the door to see a familiar orange haired doctor come in.

"Hey Inoue. You ready to go-" Ichigo interrupted himself as he caught Rukia staring at him. Her dark purple eyes were staring up at him and her lips parted in a slight O. "What the hell are you looking at?"

"You just knocked..."

"No shit, sherlock."

"You just knocked on a door."

"Yeah, so?"

Ichigo and Orihime were both surprised as Rukia jumped to her feet, pointing an accusing finger to her co-worker. "What the hell, Ichigo? You've never knocked on my door! Not once in four years! Then, when this girl shows up, you knock on her door?" Rukia exclaimed, her eyes glaring as she crushed the water bottle in her hand.

"Shut up. You're annoying," Ichigo told her as he pinched his lips together, a scowl engraving itself on his face. "What are you doing here, anyways?"

"I'm talking with your patient."

"You were supposed to do that yesterday!"

"I got busy," Rukia said as she crossed her arms over her chest, closing her eyes and sticking her nose in the air.

"Doing what?" Ichigo asked, narrowing his eyes.

Orihime watched the two with amazement. If Ichigo had black hair just like the woman that was arguing with him, she would of assumed that they were related. They acted just like siblings.

"I don't remember where that's any of your business, Ichigo."

"So you can meddle in other people's business but when it comes to yours, you want privacy? That's bullshit, Rukia!" Ichigo said, his eyes flashing with annoyance as Rukia huffed.

"U-Um...Kurosaki-kun?"

The interrupted caused the two fighters to glance at the woman who was staring at them with worried eyes.

"Kurosaki-kun? How adorable," Rukia replied as she glanced at Ichigo to see his cheeks turning pink. "So...you've moved to -kun instead of -san? You two are perfect for each other-" Rukia was interrupted as Ichigo grabbed her upper arm, pulling her out of the room as he muttered curses underneath his breath. "Hey! What are you doing? I wasn't done talking to her-" Rukia was interrupted again as Ichigo shut the door in her face.

"Damn that nosy woman," Ichigo breathed as he turned around to see that Orihime was staring at him. Brown locked with gray as Ichigo's throat became tight. He didn't know what it was but the way she stared at him, it was making his heart beat a bit faster. "Sorry about that. She's the hospital therapist, a nosy therapist but sometimes she does know how to do her job. She was supposed to come see you yesterday but..." his voice trailed off as he tried to pull his gaze from hers but he found it hard to do. Her eyes were gentle and warm – much like his mother's.

"Kurosaki-kun?"

Ichigo blinked a couple of times before he realized that Orihime was calling out his name, her eyes flashing worry for her doctor as he shook his head to get a hold of himself.

"Sorry...did you say something?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head as he felt his cheeks grow warmer. He mentally cursed himself for being so embarrassed over one girl. This was his patient that he was talking to. He shouldn't have a fast-beating heart, a tight throat and his cheeks shouldn't be turning red.

"I was saying that Kurosaki-" Orihime was interrupted as Ichigo's lips turned upward into a frown.

"What did you just call me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Um...I called you Kurosaki-kun. Is there something wrong?" she asked as he let out a heavy sigh.

"Didn't I tell you to call me Ichigo?" Ichigo asked as he made his way back to her bed, sticking his hands into the side pockets of his lab coat.

"B-But..." she trailed off as her cheeks flushed when she averted her gaze from his. "You're my doctor and..." she let her voice trail off again as she glanced back up at him and they both looked away quickly, crimson flashing across both of their cheeks.

"Fine. Call me Kurosaki-kun," Ichigo muttered as he closed his eyes, trying to figure out a way to calm his beating heart and wipe the blush from his cheeks. He didn't understand the emotions that were going through him right now. He had never felt this way about any girl before. It was weird and it was frustrating him. He wanted to know what made Orihime different from every other girl that he had communicated with. "Anyways-" Ichigo was interrupted as a loud growl came out of nowhere causing the doctor to glance at her with big eyes as Orihime's blush darkened.

The room stood still for a moment before Ichigo asked, "Was that...?" and she replied by laying a hand on the back of her head, laughing nervously.

"I guess I'm kind of hungry..." she mumbled as she looked shyly up at Ichigo who had an eyebrow raised. "I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun..."

"Eh, it's fine. You don't have to apologize. What about I take you to the cafeteria to get something to eat and then we're head to get your CAT scan?" Ichigo asked, taking his hands out of his pockets.

"CAT scan?" Orihime questioned, tilting her head to one side.

"It's sort of like an X-ray but instead of just seeing outlines of your bones and organs, we can see your insides as well. It will help us figure out what kind of amnesia you have and how to help you."

"How do you do that?"

"Well, when we get there, you'll lay on a narrow table. Normally, we call it the examination table. Once we've got you comfortable, the table will go in this tube. Once you get inside, there's x-ray's on each side of you that rotate around you. It will help us figure out what's going on with your head," Ichigo explained.

"We?" Orihime asked and Ichigo scratched his cheek as he tried to avert his gaze from her stare but for some reason, he couldn't. Her eyes were very entrancing.

"Me and the radiologist. He's the one that will be operating the machine. Don't worry, he's one of the people that actually does his job around here," Ichigo told her, muttering the last part to himself. Unlike a nosy raven haired brat and her hot headed slave, he thought, scowling.

"Are you sure it's not a scan about cats? A cat's not the radiologist is it?" her question made him question her sanity. She couldn't be serious. "Because cats are very smart and sneaky. They might take over my brain while I'm in there and you'll never know because the cat that's supposed to be operating this machine might be the leader and he would be deceiving you and then-" Orihime was interrupted as Ichigo placed the back of his hand against her forehead. "Huh? Kurosaki-kun? What's wrong?" she questioned as she looked up at him, her story now forgotten.

"I was checking to see if you had a fever. You were talking about cats and how they were going to take over your brain," Ichigo mumbled as he pulled his hand away. She didn't feel warm but he was worried that maybe she had hit her head too hard after all. "I'm going to have to help you into the wheelchair."

"Wheelchair? I think I can walk," Orihime told him as he turned around to grab the folded wheelchair that leaned against the wall. It was a good thing that he had instructed a nurse to put that there the day before.

"Don't be stupid. Your ribs are still fractured. You need to take it easy, Inoue and that's an order," Ichigo ordered as he grabbed the wheelchair, pulling it open so he could roll it towards her. After doing so, Ichigo glanced behind him to see that Orihime was already getting out of the bed, her feet touching the ground as she tried to lift herself off of the bed. "Oi! What the hell are you doing?" Ichigo cried out as Orihime took a step, only to loose her footing and fall forward.

In one quick movement, Ichigo ran towards Orihime, catching her falling form as his arms went underneath hers. Silence enveloped the room as Ichigo tried to figure out what had just happened. He had gone to get the wheelchair, she had gotten out of bed and when he had looked back, she had almost fallen. For the first time since he had become a doctor, he didn't know what to do. He had never been in a position like he was in now, especially with an attractive woman like the one that was currently in his arms.

"A-Are you alright?" Ichigo swore mentally as he caught himself stammering. He did not stammer. When someone stammered, it meant that they were nervous or embarrassed and he was neither. He couldn't move as he felt how warm her body was against his or how it molded perfectly with his. He didn't understand the unknown sensations that ran through his body. They were like electric currents running through his arms and legs – he did not like this feeling. He wasn't used to it. He had never felt this way with any girl before so why was he feeling it by having his arms wrapped around the girl that he was responsible for?

Ichigo didn't understand how his hands had gotten to her back, he had just acted on reflex and had grabbed her but however he had caught her had ended in his hands placed firmly on her back.

"I guess I'm clumsy," he heard her murmur against his chest and he swore that he could feel her hot breath through the thin fabric of his shirt.

Ichigo swallowed as his throat started to close up when her fingers clutched his shirt, twisting the fabric in her hands. It felt as if he wasn't wearing a shirt and her fingers were touching his bare skin which made his face grow very hot.

"Not clumsy but injured. Don't you listen to anything I say? You're not fully healed and you have to take it easy," Ichigo said as he pressed his nose into the top of her head, smelling her hair. Even after being in the hospital for a few days, her hair smelled nice... kind of like wild flowers.

"I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun..." her voice trailed off as she buried her face deeper in his chest, much to his dismay. No, this wasn't right and he knew it. If one of his nurses or worse, Rukia or his father, walked in – he was done for. "Thank you for stopping my fall. You're really kind."

"U-uh, yeah.. I'm your doctor so I'm supposed to take care of you, Inoue," Ichigo told her as he pulled away his face away from her hair to glance down at her.

Orihime pulled her face away from him at the same time, looking up as their eyes locked. It was awhile before both of them realized that they were looking at each other and she looked away shyly, her cheeks turning crimson.

Ichigo let out a deep breath that he had been holding in as she looked away. He needed to figure out what was wrong with him and how to get his body to start acting normal again. He didn't like all these new feelings and what was worse was that he had failed to notice that there were three eyes watching from the door behind him that was cracked open.