SOOOOOOO sorry for the long wait (again)!

Hopefully you guys still remember the plot & don't murder me after reading this!

Chapter 17

Struck by Lightning

"And then Rukia said I was being stupid for thinking that Chizuru could even be remotely attracted to me. Apparently, Chizuru's gay and I'm not her type anyway," Ichigo said.

During breakfast, Ichigo had caught the red-haired sex addict staring in his direction with a huge, lustful smile and wide eyes. Keigo had often told Ichigo that women found him "hot," which is why they acted weirdly around him. Though he didn't see why Keigo would lie, Ichigo never truly believed him. Many times, especially as a teenager, Ichigo wore a giant, unappealing scowl. Paired with his abnormal spiky, orange hair, Ichigo thought he looked like a tall, angry, orange porcupine.

But Chizuru really did seem to have been checking him out.

"Chizuru's staring at me. What should I do?" Ichigo had asked.

Rukia rolled her eyes. "Fuckboy, Chizuru is looking at Rangiku."

Kenpachi and Rangiku, who had been sitting across from Ichigo, laughed. Toshiro looked annoyed as usual.

Ichigo flushed. "Sorry, but it she did seem to be looking at me."

"You're stupid," Rukia retorted. "Chizuru's a huge lesbian. Even if she were attracted to guys, there's no way she'd be remotely attracted to you. You're not her type at all…fuckboy."

"FUCKBOY! FUCKBOY! FUCKBOY!" Rangiku and Kenpachi had chanted, causing everyone to turn and stare at the extremely embarrassed Ichigo.

And now, Ichigo was in Urahara's office, telling him everything. Normally, Ichigo hated speaking of embarrassing situations, but he decided to start opening up to Urahara more. It would be good for him.

To his surprise, Urahara hadn't cracked a smile the whole time. He just nodded every few seconds and Ichigo was beginning to wonder if he had been listening in the first place.

"And Rangiku and Kenpachi was screaming "fuckboy," whatever that means, over and over again and everyone was staring! I wanted to shoot myself; it was so embarrassing!" Ichigo paused, wondering how to end his story. "And uh…yeah…"

Urahara said nothing for a moment before slowly replying, "Ichigo, do you know what day it is?"

Ichigo blinked. "Um, February 26th?"

"Correct! And what day did you come here?"

"October 19th?"

"Which means you've been here for…?"

"A little over four months?"

Urahara smiled. "Correct. You're ready."

Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows. What was he talking about? "What am I ready for?"

"I'm sure you've heard the rules," Urahara said. "If a patient has been here for at least four months, and are deemed healthy enough by their therapist, they are permitted to go out once a week. And you are ready."

Ready. Ichigo's mouth hung open a little as his mind wrapped around that one word. Ready.

No, healthy enough. That phrase was closer to the truth, and meant a hell lot more to Ichigo. It meant that even if Ichigo wasn't fully recovered, he was getting there. He was getting better.

Ichigo laughed; he couldn't help himself. It was like he just won the lottery.

"You're happy," Urahara said.

"Of course I am! That's the best news I've heard in a while! I'm no longer going to be in here 24/7 and more importantly, I'm recovering! I'm close to a silver lining! Oh god, I can't wait to tell everyone! Actually-" Ichigo shot up from his seat and to the door, his heart pounding. "-I have to tell everyone now! Thank you and good night!"

"You're welcome!" Ichigo heard Urahara call out as he sprinted through the hallway.

Ichigo's entire body felt light, as if he were slowly rising from the ground. He felt like a dog being let out into a huge field.

Unable to contain his excitement, he jumped, stretched his arms and let out a big "YAHO!"

"You look very excited," Unohana said as Ichigo walked out of the cafeteria.

"Of course he is!" Rangiku exclaimed, jumping from behind and wrapping her arm around Ichigo. "He's getting out of here!"

Ichigo chuckled. "Just for today."

Last night, Urahara informed Ichigo that he was eligible to go out once a week. Out of excitement, Ichigo burst into the common room and loudly declared the amazing news. Kenpachi and Rangiku were ecstatic and nearly snapped Ichigo's body with their hugs. Toshiro patted his shoulder and congratulated him. Rukia just smiled.

"Well, your escort has to take you to the front desk and sign you out," Unohana said. "She'll be here shortly. Have fun, Mr. Kurosaki! Everyone else, have a nice day!" And with that, Unohana walked off, but not before glancing reproachfully at Kenpachi, who was staring at the ground.

"Hey Kenpachi, how's the letter going?" Ichigo asked when Unohana was out of earshot.

Kenpachi looked up and grinned. "I'm not done with it yet but so far, it's not awful. I'll let you and Toshiro proofread when I'm finished."

"I want to read it, too!" Rangiku said.

"Oh hell no! If you get your hands on my letter, you're going to draw hearts everywhere and write quotes from that stupid chick flick!"

"For your information, The Notebook is a classic. The quotes are extremely romantic and every girl loves them!"

"Maybe but Unohana isn't a girl! She's a woman!"

"I'm a woman too!"

"You're a 13 year old girl trapped in a 36 year old woman's body! Huge difference!"

While Rangiku and Kenpachi bickered, Ichigo turned to Rukia. As happy as he was about going out, Ichigo couldn't help but feel guilty over missing practice.

"If you want, I can come back earlier," Ichigo offered. "Maybe sometime after lunch?"

Rukia smirked and waved one hand. "Nah, it's fine. I actually want you to go out. It's good for you."

Ichigo smirked back. "Thanks, Rukia."

"Mr. Kurosaki?" An unfamiliar voice said.

Ichigo turned around and saw a tall nurse with a lavender pixie cut. She looked nervous.

"Yeah, that's me," Ichigo said. "Are you my escort for today?"

The nurse nodded a bit too quickly. "Yes! I'm Miss Kotetsu. I have to take you to the front desk now."

"OK," Ichigo said. He turned to say goodbye to everyone, but Rukia was the only one other than him to notice Miss Kotetsu. Kenpachi and Rangiku were still arguing and Toshiro was just…gone. Knowing Toshiro, he probably just left so avoid listening to Kenpachi and Rangiku.

"Well, I'll see you later," Ichigo told Rukia.

"Yeah, see ya," Rukia replied. "Remember, don't be stupid."

"I'll try." He nodded at Miss Kotetsu. "Well then, let's go."

The cafeteria wasn't far from the front desk, but the walk felt extremely long. Miss Kotetsu was awkwardly quiet and despite being a fast talker, a slow walker.

When they finally reached the front desk, Ichigo signed a contract about safety or whatever, and a sign-out sheet.

"Where would you like to go first, Mr. Kurosaki?" Miss Kotetsu asked as they headed towards the door.

Ichigo shrugged. "I haven't decided yet. I think I'm just gonna walk around and see what I'm in the mood for."

"R-Right."

They were at the door now. Ichigo took a deep breath, opened it, and was instantly met with the cold winter air. It nipped the tip of his nose.

"Let's go this way," Ichigo said, pointing to the left as they stepped out. They walked in that direction.

Since March was just around the corner, much of the snow was melted. Whatever was left was gray mush. Yuck.

It was morning, so the streets were crowded with people on their way to work. Ichigo wondered if he would see a familiar face.

"By the way, what's your first name?" Ichigo asked.

Miss Kotetsu looked startled. "M-My first name?"

"Yeah. I hate being formal, so you can just call me 'Ichigo' and I'll call you by your first name."

"That's inappropriate, Mr. Kurosaki!"

"It's what I want though, and it isn't hurting anyone. Unohana does it all the time when we're alone."

Miss Kotetsu flinched. "You and Miss Unohana…?"

"What?! No! I mean when she's escorting me and there's no one else around."

"Oh, well…if Miss Unohana does it…" Miss Kotetsu hesitated. "My name is Isane."

"Hello, Isane," Ichigo said. "Why are you so nervous?"

Isane flushed. "Miss Unohana told me to escort you. Whatever she tells me to do, I have to do it perfectly. I don't want to disappoint her!"

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "That's what you're so nervous about? Letting down Unohana?"

"Miss Unohana is like a mother to me!" Isane said defensively. "Disappointing her would be the worst!"

"Well, if you two are so close, then she'll be fine with you just trying your best." Ichigo looked around and saw a store called The Chocolate Factory. Chocolate was Ichigo's favorite food, and he hadn't eaten any in a while.

"Let's go in here," Ichigo said.

When they entered the store, Ichigo was hit by the sweet scent of chocolate. All around the store were shelves and racks of chocolate bars, chocolate cake, chocolate balls, chocolate everything. Ichigo could even see a chocolate fountain in the back.

"Holy shit," Ichigo mumbled. He glanced over at Isane, who stared with her mouth open.

Isane looked down at Ichigo. "So, um, I suppose we can split up in here. Meet me at the door when you're done."

Suddenly, Ichigo remembered something important: he didn't have any money on him.

"Wait, I don't have any money now," Ichigo said. "I can run down to the bank and withdraw some."

Isane shook her head. "We can't be that far apart Mr. Ku-I mean, Ichigo! You can just pay me back later."

Ichigo hated when people bought things for him when it wasn't Christmas or his birthday. Even if he was going to pay back later, the idea of people spending money on him made him uncomfortable.

"I don't have to get anything," Ichigo said. "I can just look around."

Isane shook her head again. "No, I'll buy whatever you want. You're not going to spend your first day out getting nothing. Next week, we can go to the bank and you can get your own money and pay me back then. But for today, let me buy you what you want."

"Oh. OK," Ichigo said, taken aback by the firmness of her tone. "I'll come to you when I have everything."

Isane smiled. "I'll be at the chocolate fountain for now."

While Isane dashed to the back of the room, Ichigo glanced around and ran his fingers along a rack labeled "POP Chocolate Bars." He picked a bar up and saw that the black wrapper was covered in a rainbow of overlapping patterns, like a wall of graffiti. Some of the patterns were random shapes, some were emoticons, and some were words. Ichigo brushed his thumb over the word "SICK."

Ichigo tucked the chocolate bar into his coat pocket and turned to look around some more. As he did so, his eyes trailed past the window and caught a flash of orange in the dull winter colors.

Somewhat startled, Ichigo's head turned sharply. He stared out the window and saw a group of people waiting to cross the street. Among the dark heads was an orange one. The hair was shiny, long and straight until the bottom where it curled slightly. The head was small and round and simultaneously sharp and soft looking: the type of head where you could tell the person was beautiful without having to look at their face.

Ichigo recognized it because he had seen the back of that head too many times.

Orihime.

Ichigo walked out of the The Chocolate Factory, taking long, fast strides. Somewhere in the back of his head, he knew it was beyond stupid to go to her.

But he needed to talk to her.

He had too many questions.

"Orihime!" Ichigo called out as he neared the crowd.

Orihime's back stiffened slightly at the sudden sound of her name before turning around, her eyes wide and lips open.

Ichigo halted. It had been so long since he had seen her and their marriage had ended on such bad terms. And now, here she was standing a few feet away from him and looking just as beautiful as before.

They stood there staring at each other in silence, with Orihime's expressions ranging from shock to sadness and…fear.

She ran.

And Ichigo ran after her.

"Orihime, wait!" Ichigo cried, his heart pounding painfully against his chest. "Orihime, I need to talk to you! Orihime!"

Orihime didn't stop. She was faster than Ichigo remembered.

Suddenly, Orihime slid forward, probably on ice, and waved her arms frantically to maintain balance. Her decrease in speed allowed Ichigo to catch up to her. He caught her arm to keep her from falling.

"Orihime-"

"Let me go!" Orihime was pulling her arm back, trying to free herself. Her face was turned away from him. "You have a restraining order! Let me go!"

Ichigo's heart sank. "P-Please Orihime! I just need to talk! It doesn't have to take long! Please!"

"L-Let me go!" Orihime's voice was shaking

People were surrounding them now. They were staring.

"She said to let her go!" One man said, grabbing Ichigo's shoulder. Ichigo elbowed him in the chest, forcing him to back off. A few people screamed.

"Someone should call the police!" A woman exclaimed.

The entire world seemed to be spinning. Ichigo's head was beginning to hurt. "Orihime, we need to TALK!"

"No we don't! Just let me go!"

"I CAN'T!"

"Stop shouting!"

"I'M NOT SHOUTING! JUST PLEASE HEAR ME OUT!"

Orihime stopped struggling. Breathing heavily, she slowly looked up. Her brown eyes, normally expressing a bubbly optimism Ichigo never completely understood, were filled with tears.

"I-Ichigo…please," she whispered. "Let me go…I just want…" her voice choked up.

Ichigo felt numb. Either he was emotionless, or was feeling too many things at once. He reluctantly released her. Instead of walking away like he expected, Orihime remained and stared sadly at him.

A siren blared. Ichigo felt someone place their hand on his shoulder.

"What's going on?" A policeman asked.

"Officer, this man was harassing this poor woman," The woman from before said, pointing at Orihime.

Orihime opened her mouth like she wanted to say something, but no words came out.

The policeman turned his head and studied Ichigo's face. "Wait a fucking minute. Aren't you the doctor that beat the shit out of that naked guy?" He glanced at Orihime. "And this lady…wasn't she there too?" His eyes trailed down Orihime's body and he nodded to himself.

"Well it looks like you got yourself in trouble again," The policeman said. He handcuffed Ichigo, who lost all of his energy, and guided him into the car.

"W-Wait!" Ichigo and the policeman turned and saw Isane running to them, her eyes wide with fear.

Isane stopped before them and bent down to clutch her knees. She was breathing hard. "O-Officer. That man is a patient at Las Noches. Please let me take him back. We'll decide how to deal with him."

The policeman sighed. "I'm afraid I might not be allowed to do that."

Isane was practically crying. "Please Officer! This is a sick man, and he went to the police department before during a difficult time. Bringing him there may be triggering. Let me take him back to Las Noches. We can handle him more easily."

The policeman hesitated. "I suppose…but it might not be a good idea for you to bring him back alone. I'll give you two a ride and explain everything. Is Mr. Aizen there?"

Isane swallowed. "Right now? I believe so."

"Perfect. I can tell him the dangers of letting sick people out in public. Now, get in the car."

The three of them entered the car. The crowd that had surrounded them began to disperse, though Ichigo could tell they were still talking about him.

Ichigo gazed out the window. As the car began to move, Ichigo could see a single tear roll down Orihime's cheek before she turned and ran.

The next hour was a blur. Ichigo remembered seeing Unohana's concerned blue eyes. Isane crying about how this was all her fault. An expressionless Aizen as the policeman told him about the incident.

Now, Ichigo was alone sitting in Aizen's office, staring at an upside-down photograph on his desk. In the photograph, a younger Aizen was with an ethereal, raven haired woman. His hair was messy instead of slicked back and he was smiling. Not smirking like he did now, but smiling with his teeth showing. His eyes were bright, too. He looked happy.

The wooden frame of the photograph was placed down instead of propped up, as if Aizen was just holding and looking at it.

From behind, Ichigo heard a door open and then close.

"My my, you sure got yourself in trouble, Kurosaki Ichigo," Aizen said as he sat down in the leather chair across from Ichigo. His eyes followed Ichigo's gaze and darkened. He took the photograph and placed it in a drawer.

"I-I didn't harass her," Ichigo mumbled.

"Officer Aramaki told me otherwise. He has several witnesses too." Ichigo couldn't tell if Aizen was using his normal tone or was amused.

"What's going to happen to me?" Ichigo's voice was barely a whisper. "Is my 'going out' privilege gonna be taken away?"

Aizen sighed. "I hate doing this, Mr. Kurosaki. I truly do. However, when dealing with mentally ill people, I have to consider the public's safety and interest. If a patient is going to stir up trouble and threaten the wellbeing of others, I have no choice but to confine that patient behind these walls for a certain period of time."

A chill ran down Ichigo's spine as he slowly looked up at Aizen. "W-What do you mean?"

Aizen leaned forward. "It means that you will be forbidden from stepping out of Las Noches for some time: possibly several months. You cannot leave even for special occasions."

Ichigo felt a jolt, as if he were just struck by lightning. "B-But my sister…my younger sister's wedding is in a couple of months! A-And I have this dance thing coming up too!"

Aizen shrugged. "I'm sorry, Mr. Kurosaki, but you cannot attend them."

Ichigo's eyes stung and Aizen's face blurred. He was tearing up. "Please, Mr. Aizen, make an exception! Let me attend my sister's wedding and this dance competition! I promise I'll stay in here for every other day, even Christmas if my confinement lasts that long! Let me out for just these two days!"

"I cannot."

"Y-Yes you can! You're the one who makes all the rules! You can make an exception!"

"If I could, I would, but I truly cannot. As I said before, I have to consider the public's interest."

"And my sister is apart of the public! And she wants me to attend her wedding! I promised her I would go, Mr. Aizen. I made a commitment, and not just to her but to Ru-Miss Kuchiki! I promised Miss Kuchiki that I would be her dance partner!" Tears were streaming down Ichigo's face now. His heart was twisting tightly.

Aizen propped his elbows on his desk and placed his hands together so that they were covering his mouth. He shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Kurosaki. There's nothing I can do."

Ichigo felt as if his body were made of glass, and his glass body had just shattered into millions of pieces. Aizen shut his eyes for a moment before slowly standing up and walking away. Ichigo heard the door open.

"I'll let you stay here for a few minutes, if you want," Aizen said. "I understand that you received heartbreaking news and need time to take it in." He closed the door.

Ichigo sat there alone with the only sound being his sharp breathing. After a few moments of slow, painful agony, Ichigo buried his tear-streaked face into his hands as the world around him collapsed.

As I said before, please don't kill me. I know this chapter must've been super frustrating to read but I promise I did it for a reason.

I've been getting several reviews asking about Orihime-how she's doing and whatnot-and I hope this chapter gave you all an idea! I'll reveal more later one.

Thank you!