The Triplet Alphas' Forbidden Temptation

The weekend passed far too quickly. The biggest topic throughout Ravencourt was, unsurprisingly, the wedding. People couldn’t seem to stop talking about how extravagant it had been. From the breathtaking decorations to the rare moon lilies and the sheer scale of the celebration, photographs and videos had spread through social media and pack networks almost immediately. By Monday morning, however, Yuki had more immediate problems.

She sat at the back of the classroom, half-listening to the lecturer discuss their upcoming assessment while her pencil moved lazily across the page. The wall clock was creeping towards noon.

Their hospital attachment had reduced their normal school schedule to two-hour classes, but somehow, those two hours still felt endless. After two consecutive lectures, everyone’s brains had begun to resemble overcooked porridge.

Yuki rested her cheek against one hand while continuing to sketch with the other. Her drawing was of Yuki. Or, more accurately, the mysterious silver-haired man, Yuki. She had captured the shape of his face, his hair and the sharpness of his eyes, but something still felt wrong. She frowned at the page.

"Why are you so hard to draw?" she muttered beneath her breath, erasing part of the jawline. It was like her skills couldn’t capture that ethereal beauty.

She had barely begun correcting it when the whispering behind her caught her attention.

"The moon lilies were insane." Her brows furrowed as she glanced up, noticing two girls in the row before her whispering.

"I know! I honestly thought those flowers only existed in old records." The other one replied immediately, her eyes gleaming with excitement.

"I saw them on the broadcast. They looked unreal." The first girl chirped, covering her mouth as she spoke, but it did nothing to lower her voice.

The other girl lowered her voice. "If I were Estella, I would have died from embarrassment."

A quiet giggle followed. "The worst part is that Luna Aevia is impossible to hate. Have you seen her face?" The first girl was none other than Celeste, Gareth’s girlfriend, gossiping to another girl whose name Yuki couldn’t remember. Marie was sitting next to them, giving them an eye signal to keep it down, but they ignored her.

"Exactly. How are you supposed to hate someone who looks like that?" The second girl chirped.

Yuki’s pencil paused. She resisted the urge to turn around. "Wait," Celeste whispered, her eyes going wide. "Isn’t Yuki Aevia’s adopted sister? Alexander adopted her, right?"

They both turned around to steal a glance at Yuki before facing forward. "Yes. They look so much alike," Celeste’s gossiping partner gushed.

Celeste rolled her eyes. "I still think Aevia is prettier," she grumbled.

Yuki’s eyebrow twitched. She stared down at the unfinished drawing of the mysterious Yuki. She wondered what those girls would say if they saw the male Yuki sitting on her paper. Her lips twitched. Probably something equally ridiculous.

"They would probably lose their minds," she murmured.

"Girls." The lecturer’s voice cut through the classroom. The whispering stopped immediately. "If you have something important to discuss, kindly wait until after the lecture."

The girls lowered their heads. "Sorry, ma’am."

The lecturer sighed before turning back towards the board. "Since your hospital attachment begins, the extra tutorial sessions scheduled for this week have been cancelled. I want everyone to read ahead and familiarise yourselves with the next topic."

A few relieved sighs spread through the classroom. The lecturer glanced at the clock. "That’s all for today. Your respective vehicles are already waiting outside. Don’t keep them waiting."

The room immediately erupted into movement. Chairs scraped against the floor. Bags were zipped. Conversations resumed at twice the volume as everyone rushed towards the door. Yuki packed her things into her bag and was about to leave when the lecturer called her name.

"Yuki, wait a moment."

She turned. The lecturer approached with a small smile. "How are you feeling? You were on medical leave for quite some time."

"I’m doing much better, ma’am." Yuki gave her a reassuring smile. Thankfully, the treatment had worked remarkably well. She no longer needed assistance moving around and could finally return to her normal routine.

"I’m glad to hear that." The lecturer nodded. "However, you missed one of your tests while you were away."

Yuki’s shoulders sagged. "I’ll have to take it separately?" She hated the thought of that.

"Not exactly." The lecturer shook her head. "I’ll be sending an assignment to your email. It will cover the material from the test you missed."

"Okay." Yuki chimed, relief written across her face.

"Make sure you complete it before the deadline," the lecturer reminded her, amused by her smile.

"I will." Yuki nodded immediately.

The lecturer smiled. "Good. Now hurry before your transport leaves without you."

Yuki gave a small nod. "Thank you, ma’am."

She hurried out of the classroom. By the time she reached the vehicle, everyone else was already seated. Fortunately, they had waited.

Judging by the irritated expressions greeting her, however, it was clear nobody was particularly pleased about it. Yuki ignored the looks and climbed inside. Gareth muttered something under his breath about people who couldn’t keep to time.

She pretended not to hear him. She knew exactly why most of them disliked her. Ever since she had taken fifth position, a place Gareth’s girlfriend had previously occupied, their attitude towards her had been anything but friendly.

The vehicle pulled away from campus. A little after one in the afternoon, they arrived at the central hospital. Everyone climbed out, gathering their bags and checking their assignment details. Marie was the last to leave the vehicle. As the highest-ranked student in their group, she had naturally taken on the leadership role. She waited until Yuki stepped down before speaking.

"Yuki." Yuki turned, and Marie continued. "Since you were away, the rest of us have already been assigned to our departments."

Yuki nodded. "You’ll need to meet your supervisor before joining the others," Marie informed her.

Yuki froze. Her fingers tightened around the strap of her tote bag. The thought of seeing Kieran wasn’t exactly appealing. She forced a small smile. "Thanks for letting me know."

Marie nodded and walked away. Yuki remained where she was for a moment, staring at the hospital entrance. A heavy breath escaped her. She adjusted the tote bag hanging from her shoulder, the faint outline of her scrubs visible through the fabric. She needed to see Kieran.

The automatic doors slid open with a soft hiss. Cool air-conditioning washed over her as she stepped into the main lobby. The central hospital was already busy, nurses moving between stations, visitors waiting near the reception desks, and the distant beep of monitors drifting from the corridors beyond.

Yuki approached the information desk, offered a polite smile and asked, "Please, where is Dr Ravencourt’s office? I need to talk to him about my department assignment."

The receptionist checked the system, then pointed her towards the west wing.

"Third floor, research and specialist wing. You’ll want the corridor past the imaging suite."

Yuki thanked her and headed towards the elevator, tightening her grip on the strap of her tote bag.