The Angel's Share is quiet, save for Diluc's acerbic words.

"I need to close up," he says, schooling his voice into that well-practiced, terse tone of his.

"Hm, are you kicking me out?" Zhongli leans in close, smoothing his hand across his shoulder, fingers lingering against the curve of it.

Diluc doesn't answer immediately. Zhongli watches him swallow, his throat bobbing as he tries to find something to say, and then— "No." There is a pause. "Though, I fail to see why you would waste your time here. I don't make for good company."

They both know why. A while back, Zhongli visited Mondstadt for the first time in centuries, and was met with a very well-brewed cup of tea, and an intriguing bartender. Diluc isn't like most men; he's crusted by constant annoyance, and he's a bartender who doesn't drink the brew.

Zhonglihas come back after that night, time and time again, and the conversations they share are about any and everything. Diluc is a man who watches all from behind his counter, pretending to be aloof as he wipes down his mugs. They are more alike he might know, thinks Zhongli, a perfect example of playing a little bit dumb.

"I like puzzles," says Zhongli finally. "You already know that."

"Only puzzles?"

Zhongli smirks, pressing Diluc against the bar counter. He slides a hand down Diluc's side, tugging gently at his waistcoat. "Dressed down, tonight, are we?" He's lacking his usual full suit.

Diluc laughs. "Only you would say that. The others think that this is formal." Diluc drags his hand down Zhongli's front, smoothing over the soft fabric of his shirt before tugging at his tie. "And what about you? Where's your coat?"

"Hanging in the coat closet, right where you expect. Aren't you the one who encouraged me to relax? Shed that 'insufferably stuffy exterior'?"

"I do think that was Kaeya," says Diluc with a scoff. Then, he pulls Zhongli close and kisses him.

Zhongli doesn't quite remember when their talks turned into this, but it was an easy thing born from loneliness and curiosity. Neither of them is looking for something specific, which makes the casual simplicity of what they share easy to lean into.

The both of them crave comfort, even for fleeting moments, and Zhongli would be lying that he hasn't grown at least a little fond. But Diluc is a lone wolf—his words, not Zhongli's—and that suits him perfectly fine as well.

Zhongli responds eagerly, tongue slipping out to lick across Diluc's mouth. His hand curls around Diluc's waist, settling against the small of his back. Diluc's arms fall across his shoulders, fingers dragging across the fine baby hairs of Zhongli's neck.

"Careful," says Zhongli against his mouth, "otherwise I might think you'll want more."

"And if I do?"

Zhongli's gaze flickers to the door. "Weren't you going to lock up?"

"Already did. You didn't think I'd actually kick you out, did you?"

Of course not, not after the long nights spent in each other's company after hours, sharing stories and non-alcoholic drinks. Zhongli chuckles, reaching up to smooth his thumb across Diluc's bottom lip. Diluc nips at it, teething the joint before sucking it into his mouth, and suddenly, Zhongli's trousers are just a little too tight.

He tips Diluc's face back, kissing him again, tongue slipping past his teeth. They share lips and breaths. Zhongli grasps Diluc by the hips, pushing him back against the counter. Diluc is hard, tenting his trousers, and Zhongli grinds their erections together for a little bit of relief.

"So quick," says Diluc.

Zhongli tugs at his hair. "It takes one to know one. Or, are you teasing an old man?"

Diluc gives him an amused look, knowing full well just what, and who he is. And was. "You're friends with that damned bard," he'd said one night, "Do you think I'm dumb enough to not realize who he is when he wags his lips? Those insufferable songs that he sings? Why do you think I run a tab and never charge him?" Diluc hums softly, tugging at Zhongli's tie again before dragging his hand down, and down, and down—

"It's more fun to tease a god, no?" He cups Zhongli's cock, squeezing at it through the rough fabric of his trousers, and that is all that it takes.

Zhongli turns him around, chest flat to the counter—but Diluc goes easily, and readily, his breath hitching as Zhongli ruts against his ass. Zhongli's fingers deftly pull at his waistcoat, slipping it off his shoulders before folding it gently and laying it to the side.

"Unnecessary," grumbles Diluc, voice muffled slightly by the wood of the countertop.

"We don't want it to get wrinkled." Zhongli pulls at his shirt, and then his trousers, slipping then past the swell of Diluc's ass. He ruts the shirt up, revealing smooth skin, running his fingers down the length of Diluc's spine as he feels every knot and nob, every rise and dip of the bone.

Zhongli drops to his knees, ignoring the hard floor.

"Zhongli—" starts Diluc, turning to see what he's doing, but Zhongli shushes him.

"You're dangerous at times," he says, digging his fingers into Diluc's muscled behind. "Distracting, but in the best of ways, perhaps."

"That's just your dick talking—Oh."

Zhongli spreads his asscheeks wide, thumbing through his crack, circling the digit around the rim of his hole. A little too loose, a little too pliant, slick with oil, and— "Did you do this?" asks Zhongli, thumb dipping in, marveling at the way that it sinks in far too easily. "Were you so desperate that you couldn't wait? Prepared yourself for me—"

"Desperation," mutters Diluc under his breath, "As if. It's because you're too slow, too careful."

Perhaps, thinks Zhongli, but it's with intent. He tends to relish his lovers, lavishing them with attention. The pleasure he derives comes mostly from the sounds that Diluc makes, or the way that he crumbles underneath Zhongli's nimble fingers.

"That is the fun of it," says Zhongli, pulling his thumb back, watching the way that Diluc's rim flutters.

"Maybe you really are just old. Will you get on with it?"

"With what? I'm afraid that my hearing isn't what it once was, so you might have to say it a little louder."

Diluc groans, his forehead thunking against the wood, no doubt finding little humor in Zhongli's teasing. "Just—whatever it is you're going to do, get on with it." Zhongli swirls his thumb around his entrance, but doesn't press in, and that frustrates Diluc. "Zhongli, just—fuck."

Zhongli leans forward and sweeps his tongue across Diluc's hole. He bullies it, circling that fluttering furl of muscle, his fingers tugging Diluc's asscheek to the side for a better angle. Diluc bucks against him. His fingers grip the edge of the counter tightly, and Zhongli takes it as a slight victory. Anything to sweep this man off his feet, to push him past the overbearing sense of propriety.

And, the view isn't bad.

Zhongli slips one finger in, and then two, fucking into Diluc's hole as he licks across his rim. His fingers wriggle and curl, pushing past those tight muscles, pressing against Diluc's insides with poise and precision. Diluc goes taut, his thighs tensing. Zhongli laughs against his backside, nuzzling at the smoothness of his asscheek.

"Big words, earlier, for a man who comes apart so easily."

"Wrong."

Zhongli pauses. "So I should stop then?"

"No." Diluc says it immediately, breathlessly, his voice thick with lust. He hides his face in the crook of his elbow, chest flush with the counter as he ruts back against Zhongli. "I'm—Gods, you're going to make me say it."

Zhongli waits, insufferably patient. "I do remember saying that I might be going deaf in my old age." Diluc will complain later, but the teasing is worth it now, at that moment as Zhongli circles his loosened rim with the pad of his thumb.

"Insufferable," says Diluc. Then, softer, quieter, he continues with, "Your tongue." A pause. "You… you know."

Zhongli knows, and he smirks devilishly as his tongue lolls out, this time different than the standard human's. Longer, and girthier, when his tongue slides in, it slips deep. Diluc moans, hips bucking. When Zhongli pulls back, he can see Diluc's cock twitching as it hangs there, hard and aching. Precome dribbles from the tip, dripping all over the floor.

Perfect.

He treats it like a feast almost, serpentine tongue drilling in and dragging across Diluc's prostate. Zhongli drools, making a mess of himself as he spreads Diluc's hole wide, thumb pressed against the edge and resting there.

Diluc is loud—the sort of loud that gets a man in trouble—but it's empty in the tavern, and the front door is locked tight. Zhongli can imagine Diluc's face, red and embarrassed as he tries to hide it. Just the sort of look that he loves to bring forth with this sort of pleasure.

"Fuck," hisses Diluc as Zhongli's tongue grazes his prostate again. He reaches back, curling his fingers into Zhongli's hair and pulls. Zhongli moans, delighting in the burn of his scalp. He drags his thumb across the seam of Diluc's balls, squeezing them slightly as he thrusts his tongue in and out. "Fuck, there—"

Zhongli knows, and he knows that it won't take long for Diluc to come like this, fucking back against his face, trying to take his tongue deeper. Zhongli snakes his hand around his front, grasping at Diluc's cock. It's an awkward angle, but Zhongli manages, fingers jerking Diluc's shaft in time with every punch of his tongue.

Diluc comes just like that, Zhongli's tongue thick in his ass as his rim tightens. Makes a mess of his hand with pearly white come. Zhongli strokes him through it, nearly to the point of overstimulation.

"Hah, that's—enough. Gods, Celestia—"

Zhongli pulls away and sits back, wiping at his mouth with a hand. The other he pulls to his lips, licking Diluc's come clean before wiping it on a towel. Diluc watches with eyes narrowed, his face just barely turned towards him.

"Fuck," he croaks.

"Do you want to?" Zhongli asks it casually but already knows the answer. Diluc's hole twitches at the question, and he drags his thumb across it before slipping it inside once more. Then, Zhongli retreats, which pulls a whine from Diluc.

Zhongli stands, pulling Diluc's ass flush to his hips, grinding his aching cock against him.

"Too much clothing," says Diluc, "You always wear too much damn clothing."

"That's like a pot calling the kettle black."

"Did you come here only for tea? Or to fuck me?"

Zhongli chuckles as he undoes his trousers. "Both," he says, "And you knew that, otherwise you wouldn't have prepared for me so well." He wraps his hand around his cock, stroking it gently. Groans as Diluc watches him back with a ruddy, half-lidded and lustful gaze. "Now, who's a good boy?"

Diluc's only answer is a smirk.