“You’ve never done a body shot?” Kyle asked, eyebrows raised in surprise.
“No, can’t say that I have,” Hal said, laughing and shaking his head. “Not the type of thing you see in the bars I frequent.”
“You’ve been hanging out in the wrong bars, then,” Kyle said. He took Hal’s hand and stood up, a little unsteadily, and tugged Hal up after him. “Come on. We are going to introduce the tradition of body shots to Oa.”
Maybe if he’d been a little more sober, Hal would have put up a fight. Wasn’t he too old for this kind of thing? But the idea of slurping alcohol off Kyle’s body was pretty damn appealing, so he let Kyle drag him over to the bar. Guy was behind it, putting away glasses while he talked to Arisia and Sodam Yat.
“Clear off the bar,” Kyle said. “We’re going to do body shots.”
Guy grinned. “Great idea, kid!” He patted the bar. “Up you go, Arisia!”
Arisia snorted and rolled her eyes. “In your dreams, Gardner.”
“What’s a body shot?” Sodam asked, throwing a glare at Guy.
“A human mating ritual involving alcohol,” Arisia said, trying to keep a straight face as she cleared away her drink and the bowl of peanuts. She set them on the table behind her and then turned back to the bar. “So who’s doing the shot?”
“I am,” Kyle said before Hal could even open his mouth.
Arisia giggled and patted the bar just like Guy had. “Up you go, Hal!”
Hal glanced at the bar, suddenly self-conscious. But it wasn’t like they had never done anything embarrassing in public before — that incident where he and Kyle got caught shagging under the Central Battery by the Guardians was still talked about. He shrugged off his jacket and handed it to Arisia, then hopped up to sit on the bar.
A crowd was gathering now, curious alien eyes staring at him, and Arisia explained again about ‘human mating rituals’.
“Should we be seeing this?” Isamot asked, casting a wary glance at the humans.
“It’s definitely a public ritual,” Arisia assured him. “Happened all the time when I was working at Guy’s bar on Earth.”
Kyle put his hand on Hal’s chest. “Lay back and lift your shirt.”
Hal did as he was told, stretching out along the bar. His head was even with Arisia now. “Human mating rituals?”
She laughed. “It was the easiest way to explain your odd human behavior. But it’s not too far off the mark, is it?”
Hal chuckled. “No, I suppose not.”
He heard the clink of a bottle, probably Guy getting out the tequila. “I won’t need the glass,” Kyle said.
Hal lifted his head. “What do you mean you won’t need the glass?”
Kyle grinned and brushed his fingers over Hal’s navel. “Don’t need one.” He handed Hal the slice of lime.
Hal put it between his lips, grimacing a little at the taste. He’d never really been a fan of limes. Or tequila, for that matter. But for Kyle, he’d make an exception.
Kyle picked up the shaker of salt and bent over Hal’s belly.
“No trying to ‘eat the worm’ while you’re down there,” Guy said.
Kyle grinned up at him. “Don’t worry, I’m saving that for later.”
Hal coughed in surprise, nearly spitting the lime out. Kyle wagged his eyebrows at him.
“Okay, that is way too much information, kid,” Guy complained, wrinkling his nose. “I did not need to know that.”
Kyle bent his head again and his tongue licked a path around Hal’s navel. Hal fought the urge to moan and the even stronger urge to fist Kyle’s hair and push his face lower. Later, he reminded himself. Then the sprinkle of salt hitting his skin, followed by the splash of cool liquid.
Kyle’s tongue swirled again and the cool turned to heat on Hal’s belly. He seemed determined to suck every drop of tequila from Hal’s navel and Hal couldn’t help the whimper in the back of his throat. At least the sound was drowned out by the cheers and laughter coming from the crowd around them. Then Kyle’s mouth was on his, sucking the lime from Hal’s lips. Kyle lifted his head and smiled at Hal with a mouthful of green.
“Who’s next?” Guy yelled, waving the bottle of tequila at the enthusiastic Lanterns.
Hal pushed himself upright and slid off the bar, right into Kyle’s arms. “So what did you think?” Kyle asked as he pulled Hal away from the boisterous crowd. “Willing to do it again?”
“I could be persuaded,” Hal said. “Especially if it’s back in your apartment, without an audience.” He stepped close to Kyle to whisper in his ear. “And you mentioned something about a worm…”