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"Master Ryusui, Mr. Saionji has arrived and has been escorted to the library," Francois announced with a bow to the young master bundled up in blankets. "He awaits for the start of your first English lesson."
"Perfect! He has been offered coffee and snacks I presume?"
"Yes, sir."
"Please whip me up a tea latte and bring it straight to the library. I shall freshen up for a bit before I start with the tutoring."
"As you wish." Francois gave one final bow and Ryusui thanked them before heading to his bathroom. He brushed his teeth and gargled some mouthwash, after all it would be terrible to greet his tutor with bad spirits floating out of his mouth. He washed his face with soap and water and then brushed his hair back to look neat. He changed out of his pajamas into a sharp casual outfit that wasn't too formal for his lesson. Finally, he made his way towards the library to welcome his tutor and start the tutoring session.
Upon opening the door, he heard the legs of the chair scrape against the wooden floor as his teacher stood up to greet him with a bow that Ryusui returned with respect.
"Good evening, Mr. Saionji," Ryusui said in English, taking a sit and a sip of the tea latte Francois had prepared for him. "I apologize for my tardiness," he then added in Japanese. "I do not actually have horrible etiquette, I assure you."
"It's alright," Mr. Saionji assured him. "Francois is pleasant company." He smiled towards the butler who gave an appreciative nod in return.
"I shall be taking my leave. Please do not hesitate to call if you my services are needed." They refilled Ukyo's empty cup of coffee and then rolled out the cart they brought to deliver their drinks.
"Shall we start?"
Ukyo had started their night by assessing Ryusui's current English language prowess by having him read short texts out loud then answering some questions to test his reading comprehension. They also chatted for a bit with his tutor assuming the role of a potential business partner. Ryusui was able to push through but seeing as most of his experience being from casual conversations and talks about marine vessels, Mr. Saionji deemed his oral skills to be severely unfit for sophisticated business transactions but good enough to ensure fluency in maybe two months worth of tutoring sessions.
Of course it wasn't just Mr. Saionji conducting an assessment. Ryusui wouldn't say he was as skilled as his celebrity friend Asagiri Gen when it came to reading people but he picked up a few tips and tricks from both him and personal experience with dealing with business. From the first few moments there was something about Mr. Saionji that made Ryusui think that the man wasn't really a teacher and that he had no prior experience with teaching a foreign language at all. His movements were too exact and his emerald eyes were too sharp for someone who would have been working with students. He also took some time to think of what to say whenever he was going to point out something with his skills or when he instructed Ryusui to complete a task. Another thing that he found out by accident was how sensitive his hearing was after he had turned his head right before Francois knocked to ask if they wanted or needed anything and reminded Ukyo of the time. He told Ryusui he heard Francois' footsteps approaching and no matter how much he tried to listen, his butler's footsteps were light and muffled by the carpet. However, in the end, he was a nice, patient, and gentle man and Ryusui was looking forward to working with him for days to come.
The next time they saw each other was after four days and Mr. Saionji was as professionally strict as he was during their first meeting. Now, he seemed more sure of how his lessons were supposed to go. Grammar wasn't a problem for him and instead they focused on words that would help him sound remarkably sophisticated and how to use them within proper context and their exact definitions. Pronunciation was one thing they were both working hard on as his accent made some words hard to grasp but Ukyo's patience and guidance helped him through. However, no matter how kind Mr. Saionji was, he was still far away from him as the man maintained their student-teacher relationship strictly professional. This went on for more than five sessions before Ryusui finally decided that maybe it would be best for both of them to get to know each other better outside of their little tutoring sessions as he had to admit trying to get close to a person who drew a line between them during study sessions was awkward.
When the day for Ryusui's lessons came to an end, Ukyo proudly declared him prepared for the foreign business world and that he should have no problem gaining business partners.
"If I may, Mr. Saionji. I would like to offer you a proposal." He said in with the English he had learned from him. Of course there were more formal ways of stating it but he did not see a reason for him to complicate things with his tutor.
"And what are you proposing, exactly?"
"I want you to tutor me with casual, everyday English. I can't keep speaking like a businessman if I want to gain friends."
"Well, if you need my services then I won't reject your request. Same schedule?"
"Of course." And from there, Ryusui was finally able to befriend Mr Saionji, no, Ukyo. He learned of his real job and how he had learned Englis. He learned about his childhood, his hopes, his dreams, and Ryusui simply desired to know more.
He desired all of Ukyo.
If he could only learn about the past, then he wanted to be in his future.
"Ukyo, can you please tell me how to say this in English?"
"What is it?" Ukyo lightly blushed at what his student said but his expectant eyes left him but no choice but to translate it.
"I like you."
"I like you, Ukyo." He repeated, following his teacher's words. "Now please tell me if I say this correctly." He waited in anticipation and he could see Ryusui's face get redder than his.
"Go out with me?"
"It would have been better if there was a "Will you please-" at the start because the way you stated your question makes it seem more like a demand despite the rising intonation at the end. That would work if you were simply saying it casually but if you were serious about asking someone out a proper sentence would be better." Ukyo smirked and the other chuckled.
"Ukyo, will you please go out with me?"
"Sure."