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Peter elbowed Johnny in the ribs as the elevator announced their arrival at the living quarters of the Baxter Building. Okay, so he was smiling a little too much for someone who was about to be chewed out for being late (again), but the quickie in the shower had been well worth Sue's annoyance, and he was fairly sure that Peter had agreed with him at the time.
Of course, now his boyfriend was thinking again and that usually meant unhealthy amounts of guilt piling up for mostly-imagined infractions. Under normal circumstances, Johnny would have shoved him against the wall and molested him until he stopped thinking so much, but he decided (rightly) that Sue would be even more annoyed at their lateness if she found them necking in the elevator.
"Sue?" Johnny called out as they stepped out of the elevator into the hallway.
"I'm here." Sue appeared from the living room, frowning at both of them. "You're late."
Johnny sighed and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah. Sorry. We were... delayed."
"I'm sure." She replied sarcastically, raising a knowing eyebrow at them both, though only Peter blushed.
"Is Franklin ready to go?" Johnny asked, not skipping a beat. His sister rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"Unfortunately, Franklin won't be able to go to the zoo today."
Johnny and Peter looked at each other, twin expressions of disbelief on their faces.
"Sue," Peter spoke for both of them, "You specifically asked us to take Franklin off your hands for a few hours today."
"I know." She sighed, leaning against the wall. "And I'm sorry that you had to come out here for nothing. Someone," she looked pointedly at Johnny, "wasn't answering his cell."
Johnny shrugged.
"What happened? Change of plans?" Peter asked, ever-curious.
"You could say that. He tried to build a laser out of tinkertoys, a hairdryer and a pair of my earrings." Johnny groaned and banged his head against the wall (in protest, Peter knew, of the fact that his nephew was turning out very much like his brother-in-law, despite Johnny's best efforts).
"So he's grounded, then?" Peter sought confirmation, a little sadly. Truth be told, the biologist in him was looking forward to their zoo trip.
"Oh, no. It's just that he and Reed will be busy in the lab all day perfecting it." Sue shrugged, and Peter tried to hold back a grin as he heard Johnny's skull collide with the wall yet again.