AN: I wrote this instead of the smut I meant to work on! T.T But I'll be working on that HK smut too, plus the IchiRuki I keep talking about. Seriously, writing is hard, guys. Do you wanna write all this for me? Please say yes! Haha.

Anyway, thank you guys for all the reviews and alerts and favorites! I didn't realize there were so many until I checked my stats! I mean, 165 favorites and 90 follows, plus almost 200 reviews? Wtf? That's insane and awesome so thank you all! I don't say it enough. :3

Thank you's for the last chapter:

Liliv00: I always have to ship my babies' babies together. I mean, Ichigo's son and Ishida's daughter? That sounds like a match made in shipper heaven to me. I'm just sayin'. Haha. Thanks for reading! :DDD

nureen: Thank you~ Oh man, Karin was so much fun to write in that fic. She's too fun to write because she can be confident and sometimes mean but also soft and motherly. Which is why I had to write her and Toushirou's baby. Because the next generation of shinigami babies will be amazing~

Summary: Doctor!AU. Karin learns the hard way that finding sleep as a newly graduated med student has some dire and interesting consequences.

Warnings: A little heavy petting here but nothing that'll change the rating. :3

November 2013: Slumberland

At this rate there was no way Karin was going to survive residency. Feeling the weight of sleep pull against her eyelids, she made her way to the quiet room reserved for interns and other lowly almost-doctors. A few hours of sleep was all she could afford before she'd be pushed back into the fray, warring with fellow first-years for the best cases and trying to keep her cool with weathered consultants alike.

How did Ichi-nii do this? I mean, he has issues getting a girlfriend but he managed doing this for four years... she grumbled to herself, not even bothering to flip the light switch. A number of tired bodies were already curled up on the cots, heavy snoring mixed in with sheets' shuffling.

Her older brother was a fifth-year resident and practically worshipped in this place. Apparently he had stumbled through his first few months too, or so he said, but the hospital staff was singing nothing but praises for Ichigo now. However, from the way she was feeling, Karin had a long way to go until they did the same for her.

Scouring for an unoccupied bed, the results were less than stellar. All of the bunk beds were taken, some even shared by desperate workers, save for one. And that particular bed, the upper years whispered dangerously, was always left open for its infamous owner.

A man so fearsome that they all simply called him 'The Dragon.'

Scoffing, Karin wondered if the white-haired genius was as terrifying as they made him out to be. Rumor had it that he was the kind of person who walked with a chip on his shoulder and a constant scowl on his lips. But it wasn't as if a future top surgeon needed particularly good bedside manner, everyone agreed.

There's nowhere to go but I can't not nap. I could kill someone if I don't get any sleep, she whined, praying that one of the bodies would stir. They were all on-call and the ER always needed an extra hand. But there were no pages, no shrill alarms to awaken her half-dead brethren. Just the sound of her breathing too loud in her ears and the painful dawning of what she had to do.

It's just one hour, two tops, Karin told herself, climbing soundlessly beneath the covers. Someone will get up soon and I'll just steal their place. The thought kept her warm as she fell into a deep sleep.

Sometimes he wasn't sure if it was worth it.

Not that he could tell his family that, Toushirou scolded himself, as he made his way down the deserted hall. A part of him wanted to drag his feet but he knew better. His family's hospital was not the place to be demonstrating his aggravation, though the temptation was certainly there.

His body was on auto-pilot as he made his way to the familiar rest area, the corner room a safe haven for all lowly medical graduates. Just a few more months and he'd be seeing less of it and doing his fellowship, and the notion consoled his tattered nerves.

If his family's hospital wasn't the nation's top facility for neurosurgery he would've considered elsewhere, his future position be damned. He had no interest in being the hospital's director or department head; there was nowhere he preferred more than an icy, well-lit operating theater.

That's not exactly true right now, he mused tiredly, running a hand through his hair while stifling a yawn. Muscle memory led him to his usual bed even with his eyes nearly closed. He was so out of it that he didn't register the extra weight hidden in the darkness or how the springs squeaked just a little louder.

Crawling beneath the covers, it didn't hit in him until his nose was pressed into jasmine-spiced hair that was strangely sweet, calming. But the stimulus was enough to get his head in gear and squinting ahead, eyes now adjusted as he looked at a girl's sleeping face.

Immediately he knew she was new; he didn't recognize her from the many colleagues he'd been forced to spend time with in the wards. And he'd remember her, he decided with a frown. Although not particularly judgmental, she was beautiful by any man's standards, or so he guessed from the filtering moonlight. There was no doubt she'd be cause for talk within the next few weeks.

The annoyance came swiftly then, with enough adrenaline to get him sitting up to glower at his bedmate. When she didn't move he felt his head begin to ache. Did he really want to deplete whatever reserves he had to discipline some newbie who would know better by tomorrow? Not when he could chew her out properly in the morning. Satisfied with that, the decision was made as soon as he fell back onto the cot and into a fitful slumber.

It was too warm for Karin's liking. For someone with thick skin like her she overheated far too easily, which was why she squirmed in her little cocoon, trying to pry off the covers. Why it was a failure was what she couldn't understand, however.

With barely awakened senses, she wriggled against the offending object keeping her down and popped her head out. A bush of white came into view, along with a man's dozing face...

Her scream was punctuated by the large 'thump' that followed.

"Oh my god, what're you doing?" Karin yelled, pressed against the wall as green eyes came up from the edge of the bed.

"I could ask you that same question." His voice scratchy from disuse, the stranger moved slowly as he stood, as if every motion was perfectly calculated. Seeing him in all his glory, it only took a second for her to register what she'd just done.

Fuck. I'm screwed on so many different levels. Not that she would give him the satisfaction of intimidating her. Although no good at playing dumb, Karin could act nonchalant with the best of them. "Let me take a guess," she began when icy eyes glowered down at her, "you're the guy everyone in this place is terrified of, aren't you? The one everyone calls 'The Dragon'?"

Bracing herself, his answer wasn't what she was expecting. "I thought I'd left behind that damned nickname once I graduated," he muttered unhappily, running a hand through adorably ruffled bed head. "One off-handed comment from Kurosaki and then I get a nickname for life..."

"You know my brother?" Karin straightened, interest piqued.

"Who, Kurosaki?" Leaning over, she felt herself suck in a breath as he examined her fully. "Must be. You've got the same look in your eye as him and the old man."

"And just what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

He shrugged and Karin wasn't sure how he made even that look condescending. "Relax, it's not an insult, kid."

Already bristled, she clucked her tongue against her cheek impatiently. "First of all, my name's not 'kid,' it's Karin. And second, who are you anyway?"

"You steal my bed and you still have the balls to ask me that?" Disbelief colored his otherwise impassive face, as he shook his head mockingly. "You're definitely related to those two. No other family could have such flagrant disregard for basic manners." Taking a step back, he crossed his arms over his chest and for the first time Karin noticed how empty the room was. "This is my family's hospital. If you're going to work here the least you can do is know that much."

The name Hitsugaya comes to the front of her mind and for once Karin was actually embarrassed. Really, she should've put two and two together by now and made peace. But her pride didn't let her do what was expected, only what it wanted. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize I had to memorize every face and name in this place during my first week." She could almost feel the sarcasm ooze from her lips.

As he rolled his eyes heavenward, she realized that she was playing with fire. This man could very well end her career if he wanted to, if she pushed him too hard. And she hated how she still couldn't back down and apologize.

It's those eyes, Karin reasoned with herself, shifting towards the edge of the bed to stand before him. They see right through me. And there was nothing more she hated than feeling transparent.

"Alright, I get it. I've worked with enough Kurosakis to know where this is going," Hitsugaya waved his hand, a frown marring his otherwise perfect face. Turning away, the tension in his shoulders didn't disappear but seemed to soften with acceptance all the same. "I'll make you a deal. As long as I'm not using the bed, feel free to borrow it. I don't spend nearly as much time in here lately and I know it's not fair for me to keep it for my own." He looked at her then and almost smiled at the surprised look on her face. "I'll let you share it with me since I'll probably be getting busier from here on. Deal?"

Unsure, her response was a dumbfounded nod, along with a glint of suspicion in her eyes. Isshin's eyes, Toushirou noted, nearly smirking as he turned away to pull off his shirt. His scrubs felt dirty and confining after sleeping longer than he intended to. He'd have to head home before coming back for his next shift.

"W-what the hell, man?! Don't take your clothes off with someone else here!" Peering behind him, the laugh that escaped him wasn't wholly unkind. But he doubted there were many times in his life where he'd see a grown woman cover her eyes like a child, peeking shyly between her fingers as if doing something illicit. He hated to think this Kurosaki might be cute under that rough exterior, as he turned to face her fully.

"You're a doctor, kid. Naked people shouldn't scare you so much." Seeing her seethe, Toushirou crossed his arms over his broad chest, not the least bit self-conscious.

"I'm not scared, you're just too friendly with strangers. And don't call me kid, dammit!" Karin fumed, removing her hands long enough to get an eyeful of pretty arrogance. And she loathed the fact that she could never hide her emotions well enough, as heat seared her light skin and she was forced to look away.

His dark chortle had the hairs on her arms standing. "I've never met anyone so pure at this age. Please tell me your father at least gave you 'the talk.' Kurosaki-sensei isn't necessarily the greatest role model but his kids are all in the medical field, right? It doesn't feel appropriate being the one to pop that particular cherry." A contemplative pause. "Or, well, any cherries you might have, to be honest."

With her jaw hanging so low, it took Karin a moment to react to that infuriating confidence of his. "Y'know what, you jerk? Go to hell! I can't believe you're the so-called genius everyone around here speaks so highly of. As far as I can tell there's nothing good about you!"

Determined to have the last word, Karin stormed out of the room and into the hall, raining curses down on Hitsugaya's head. He followed her movements until she turned the corner, still steaming as she nearly ran into a nurse and her aide.

Toushirou was still grinning to himself when a familiar head popped in, the orange glaringly bright against the pale green walls. "Oi, Toushirou, I heard there was a commotion in here earlier. There's a rumor going on that you willingly shared your bed. With a first-year too. What the hell's that about?"

"Nothing you should worry over. I haven't gone soft or anything," Hitsugaya shrugged as he made his way towards the door, now fully dressed in street clothes. "I just met someone rather interesting today."

"'Interesting'?" Crinkling his forehead, Ichigo followed after him. "What'dya mean by that? You don't find anyone interesting. Except maybe me but that's only because you thought of me as a rival more than anything else."

Against his wishes, Toushirou couldn't quite bite back the smile on his lips. "Or maybe it's just the Kurosaki family that has me so intrigued."

That had Ichigo stopping, processing the words as Hitsugaya made his way towards the automatic doors. He purposefully slowed down, waiting for the notion to sink in. And luckily for him, a Kurosaki never disappointed.

"Stay the fuck away from my sister, Toushirou!"

Waving a hand behind him, he made his way to his car with a whispered reply. "Sorry, I can't promise anything, Kurosaki."

Although the promise was in place, Karin did everything in her power to not use Toushirou's sanctioned bunk. And the extent went pretty far. She'd stay awake until one became available, curl up on the ground for a while and doze off, even share with one of the other girls on occasion. Because she absolutely couldn't sleep in a place where she knew Hitsugaya frequented, their first encounter replaying whenever she came across him.

At the very least he kept up appearances in public. Whenever Karin saw him interact with others, she understood why her brother called him 'The Dragon.' He was harsh, demanding, the kind of man that took charge and wanted perfection and delivered it when put on the spot. It was both dazzling and frightening, watching him work with such cold efficiency that she admired him against her will. And he would only get better with time, she was sure of it.

Not that Toushirou's reputation kept everyone at bay. Female nurses, patients and even residents flirted indiscriminately, pasting on pretty smiles that made her want to gag. It was so obvious that they liked the things he stood for—boyish good looks, intelligence, fortune—not the man himself. And reluctantly Karin admitted that she was glad he was too smart for those women. He brushed them away like dust, moving full-speed ahead at a pace that would've destroyed a lesser man.

Only a month on the job and she knew it definitely would've destroyed her. Numbly, her body trudged towards the quarters she was spending more time in than her own bed. Not to mention that her sleep cycle was all messed up and intermittently she'd find herself awake, unable to relax into slumber again. It felt like it'd been weeks since her last good sleep and even then...

She didn't even want to think about that.

I need to get out more, find a boyfriend or something... And she wanted to if for no reason than to have someone hold her at night. To know that the last person had been Toushirou sent a chill down her spine that wasn't entirely unpleasant. And she hated herself for it.

Without looking around, past experience told her that all the beds would be full by now. Even Toushirou's, who'd been pulling extra hours due to the influx of rare cases lately. He was in surgeries that she'd only dreamed about doing and frankly she was envious. After all, her year was relegated to watching from the sidelines, pre- and post-OP monitoring and all the little things that no one wanted to handle.

Settling onto the floor, Karin huddled into a little ball, resting her arms and head on her knees. She was too tired for this. All she wanted was one good night of sleep and maybe a lower caffeine tolerance. She was nearly delirious from her lack of rest, as she found herself slipping in and out of consciousness while the others dozed peacefully. And she probably would've stayed that way if not for the gentle brush of a hand in her hair.

The arms that carried her were warm, secure as they bunched her up and laid her onto the mattress. And they didn't leave, only settled around her as her nose buried into the soft cotton of hospital scrubs. The smell of sterile metal intertwined with musky cinnamon, the combination off-putting for most. But for Karin, it managed to lull her softly into dreamland.

Neither of them talked about it the next morning. Karin was courteous enough to not push him off the bed again and Toushirou didn't joke about how she snored on occasion. They go about their day as if it never happened, silently vowing that there would be no repeat performance. Once could be an accident, twice a favor of sorts but a third? Absolutely not.

Neither of them is very good at keeping this particular promise.

If anyone asked, Karin would blame Toushirou. After all, he was the one who would climb in when she was already settled, half-asleep, and tug her to him. There would be a struggle, mostly for a little more comforter because she hogged it, and it would always end with her back to his front. And on those nights he felt little vindictive, he had no qualms about pressing his cold hands beneath her shirt and against warm skin, making her squeal as she shoved him away.

Or maybe Karin was the one at fault. Because of their arrangement, she was the one who'd been sanctioned by the hospital to wake him whenever some higher-up needed him while taking the brunt of his grumpy mood thereafter. The fact was that no one was brave enough to enter the dragon's lair without permission and since she was the only one that had it, it was only appropriate to have her use it. She understood them and yet she still bore some resentment.

And in those rare moments where she was the one to disturb his rest, Karin did her best to make herself as scarce as possible. She'd take up the smallest amount of space, opting to nap on the linen rather than under it, and stay close to the edge so as not to give away her presence. But when she woke up she was always comfortably wrapped up in familiar arms, head buried against his shoulder with legs tangled far too intimately to be friendly. And both of them were beginning to understand that whatever boundaries had been placed between them were soon becoming non-existent.

The request came out of nowhere one morning, both of them awake and all of their peers gone.

"Hey, go on a date with me."

Karin choked on her spit as she sat up, sputtering into a hand as she hovered over her bedmate of three months. Their strange friendship had grown to include early morning coffee breaks, occasional doughnut runs and a vast amount of arguing, mostly on Karin's part, but not this. Never this.

"What're you talking about?" she finally said after catching her breath. "It's not cool to mess with people, Toushirou. What if I thought you were serious?"

Sitting up, serious blue-green eyes narrowed directly at her. "I'm not joking. I never joke about stuff like this."

"B-but it's so sudden!" But to be honest, it wasn't really.

She'd been wondering about their relationship for months, pondering if there was any chance he'd consider her as more than a body pillow and colleague. When he gave no indication that he was interested in changing their friendship, she'd resigned herself to this. Because she liked the easygoing thing they had, so effortless it was a waste to try and bend it into something it wasn't.

"We sleep together on a daily basis. What part of that seems sudden to you?"

"'Sleeping together' makes it sound like we're doing something bad. We're sharing a bunk. That's economical in this kind of situation." Wanting to avoid the conversation, she moved to the edge of the bed only to be yanked back. "What the hell, Toushirou? I have work in thirty minutes!"

"Be late. I'm not done with you yet," he growled, settling her onto his lap and his nose in her hair. "Tell me why you're avoiding the question, Karin. Why won't you go on a date with me?"

"It's nothing... Maybe I just don't think we'd be good together," she mumbled, eyes falling to half-mast as strong hands wandered. Always coaxing but never intruding, the careful hands of a man in medicine.

"You're lying," he spoke with utmost confidence. "There's very little in the world that makes more sense than us."

A snort. "So sure of yourself. Arrogance won't get you anywhere with me, Hitsugaya-sensei. I'm not one of your patients that's gonna be led around by that pretty face of yours."

"Then I guess I have to work a little harder, don't I?" Toushirou laughed, pressing a line of kisses to her neck that made her skin burn. All it took was one swift push and he was pressing her into their shared sheets, white and blue that held her scent even when she wasn't around. With her hair tossed in waves and her hands clutching at him, he knew that there was no way he could let her slip through his fingers. "You have five seconds to give me a good answer, Karin, before I do something that'll change your mind."

The soft smile and challenging silence were exactly what he wanted.

Dipping down, Toushirou kissed her soundly, melding their lips together as if he'd been imagining the feel of hers and his together for a long time. And he had, though he'd never tell her. Whenever she spoke to someone, laughed, smiled, he hated how the attention wasn't his. And Toushirou was not an easily jealous man.

But no one would know it in the way he dove in to taste her, slide his tongue against hers and pull a keen from her throat with purpose. The way her arms tightened around him only fed the furnace in his gut, as fingers found purchase against her cheek and beneath her breast. Perfectly shaped, heavy enough to fill his fingers and sensitive enough to have her arching into him for more.

He played with her body to stoke the fires in her as well, let her know how much they made sense. Because theirs wasn't a passion that would fizzle out easily, not with the way her legs gripped his hips as she sucked the air from his mouth like it was hers. And he knew her very essence would cling to him even after they were done, so apparent that it'd ward the other women away and make Ichigo so furious he wouldn't be able to see straight.

The consequences would be worth it, Toushirou reasoned as a hand skipped down Karin's uniform and to the junction of her legs. It only took a single pet to have her writhing, her voice coming out in harsh gasps and a plea she wasn't even aware of. And for a second he could see himself slipping his fingers into the waistband of her pants and sliding a finger into her. The sounds she would make echoed in his ears, unreal but so close he could nearly taste them. However, his self-control tells him to be patient, that there would be other days and nights where he could live out that particular fantasy. So he listened to it rather than every fiber of his being that was screaming for more.

Instead Toushirou was happy to let Karin kiss him deep, his eyes half-shuttered as he watched her push up against his mouth, dizzy with her own arousal. That look of starved affection sent a jolt down his spine and into his pants, painfully aware of how easy it would be to give himself over to her. Karin was the kind of lover men dreamed about, beautiful in an almost innocent way but so sensual he'd give every worldly possession to have her for one night.

But one night wouldn't be enough for either of us, Hitsugaya thought as he forced himself to back away. He had to or else he'd be using the resting area for a whole different kind of comfort. And while he had no such illusions that this place held more than a few moments of passion he would not add to them. There was his bed at home that he would be more than willing to share once she was ready.

Pressing a kiss to her forehead, he sat back on his haunches to let Karin sit up and fix herself. "You'd better leave now or else you'll get chewed out by whoever's supervising you today."

"Yeah, like I'm in any shape to go to work now…" she complained, righting her hair and adjusting her clothes. A quick shower in the locker room would be her only chance of saving her appearance. Her mind, however, was already shot and gone.

His masculine pride swelled at her velvet red pout and the glazed warmth she was trying to hide. "It's either you go to work or I take you home and finish what we started. Unfortunately you're one of those do-good types like your brother so I won't insult myself by asking you to pick."

"I'm sure you'll find something to do without me. It's your day-off, isn't it? Why don't you go home and get some real sleep?"

Lying back as Karin began to grab her things, he watched her with possessive pleasure. "If you're not there, there really isn't it any point."

"Rest is the point." She ignored the blush that blossomed over her neck.

As she made her way over to the door, she stopped for a second once she opened it. Feeling just a little naughty, she looked back over her shoulder and threw Toushirou a sultry smile. And immediately he was sitting up at attention, like a dog ready for its treat.

"Pick me up tonight for dinner," she commanded with quiet come-hither, "And if you're lucky, you might find out whether or not all of my cherries have been properly popped."

All she could do was laugh softly at the dumbfounded look on Hitsugaya's face as she closed the door behind her.

AN: And that's just how we do it. :) I hope you guys enjoyed~ I should be writing more this sem because I have a super chill schedule. Hopefully it pans out better than last sem (which almost killed me, by the way). Wish me luck! I start school again on Monday!

Thanks for reading, everybody! Until next time~