The Cleanse

Everyone sat down and tried a bite of the millet.

"Mmmm, see?" Penny said as she began to chew her millet. "Not bad, right?"

"Tastes like ground up bones," Quinn said.

"Are you sure you cooked this correctly, Mom?" Talia asked.

"Sure I cooked it right. It just doesn't have any salt or seasoning or anything like that, since we can't have that kind of stuff on the cleanse. If it's too plain for you, there is some fresh parsley in the fridge you can chop up and mix into yours, Talia."

"Oh boy, fresh parsley? My mouth is watering now."

"Look, like it or not, we are going to be having this for dinner every single night. I bought ten pounds of this shit, so get used to it!"

Everyone ate as much of the stuff as they could, which turned out to be more than they all initially thought they would eat due to how hungry everyone was. After dinner, Talia and Quinn stayed in the kitchen to clean up while their mom went to her bathroom to take a shower.

While Quinn was washing dishes, he turned around to find that Talia was sitting at the table again, teary-eyed and looking frustrated. He took a seat at the table directly across from her.

"I know this is a dumb question," Quinn began, "but how're you doing?"

"You're right, it is a dumb question," Talia responded.

Quinn just nodded his head and looked away. Talia looked up at her brother, feeling a little bad about the rudeness of her response.

"Thanks for asking though, Quinn. Sorry if I'm being a bitch, it's just...well you know."

"Eh, no worries, sis. I get it."

"It's just that...I mean, I really miss Ken. I guess all the junk food I was consuming was my way of dealing with that, I'm realizing. And now I don't even have that anymore."

"Yeah. I'm sorry, it must suck to be away from someone you love like that."

"Oh, well...I don't know about the whole 'love' thing, but yeah I do miss him."

They sat their in silence a little while longer. It was a very comfortable silence, though, each sibling processing the day the best that they could.

"So hey, board games tomorrow, right?" Talia asked several minutes later.

"Yeah! I mean, I know it's not the most exciting thing in the world, but it's something. I mean, the nostalgia alone will be nice, I think. We used to spend hours playing those things and goofing off with each other."

"Yeah we did. Just...promise me one thing, Quinn."

"Hmm?"

"Don't share anymore details about your turds."

"Deal."

*

"Are you a man?" Quinn asked.

The siblings sat on their living room floor together, having miraculously made it through six and a half days of the cleanse thus far.

"No," Talia responded. "Are you a man?"

"I am also not a man," Quinn replied.

They both began to flip down the faces of all their male characters on the Guess Who boards.

"Do you have orange hair?" Quinn asked.

"Yes. Do you have a big nose?"

"No. Are you Ashley?"

"Goddammit, Quinn! How d'you keep winning?"

Quinn mimicked the act of brushing dirt off of his shoulders.

"Can't explain greatness, sis, it just is what it is."

"Whatever, idiot. Let's see, so that's..."

Talia grabbed a notepad and pencil that was sitting beside her and looked carefully at it.

"...one-hundred and thirteen wins for you, forty-nine for me."

"Cool. Maybe I can make it to an even thousand by the end of the thirty days."

"Yeah..."

Talia stared off into space looking melancholy, a look that Quinn had gotten very used to over the past several days.

"Thinking about Ken?" he asked.

"Yeah. You think he's thinking about me?"

"Absolutely. I mean, you're his girlfriend, right? Of course he misses you."

"You really think so?"

"Totally. I know I'd miss my girlfriend if I couldn't even talk to her for thirty days...you know, if I had one, I mean."

Talia looked at her brother and smiled sweetly at him.

"You'll get one when you go to college, don't worry. I know for me it was really easy to meet guys once I got outta this crap-hole of a town. It will be the same for you, I'm sure."

"What, meeting guys?"

"Shut-up!" Talia resonded playfully. "You know what I mean!"

"Haha, yeah I hear you. So is it a really big campus?"

"Yeah, it's huge! So much stuff to do. And if you're nervous about meeting people, well you can just hang out with me and my friends until you get settled in."

"Hang out, like, hook up with your girlfriends!?"

"Don't be a creep, Quinn. Girls don't like guys that come on too strong. But yes, maybe if you play your cards right, there just might be a particular slutty friend of mine that would love to fool around with you."

"Sounds great!"

"Hey kids," their mom called out to them from the kitchen. "Dinner's ready! Come get some soup!"

"Ooh, soup!" Talia said excitedly. "That's a pleasant change of pace."

They were disappointed when they entered the kitchen to find out that "soup" just meant a broth of water and lemon juice, served with heaping mounds of millet. Quinn watched as Talia's face changed quickly from bright and wondering to grim and downtrodden. He sincerely wished that there was something he could do to cheer her up, and as he slurped down his offensive meal, thought of a perfect idea.

*

Late that night, after their mother was safely asleep, Quinn sneaked out of his bedroom and into his sister's. It was dark in her room, of course, and her breathing indicated to him that she was fast asleep herself. He approached the side of her bed and gently shook her.

"Talia," he whispered.

"Wha...breadsticks!" she called out as she awoke with a start.

"Shh! Quiet, it's me."

Talia shook her head and rubbed her eyes, trying to get her proverbial bearings.

"What the hell, dude. I was asleep!"

"Yeah, no shit. Listen, I have a surprise for you."

"Ugh, it's not more millet, is it?"

"No! Here, listen. Do you hear that?"

Quinn wiggled his right hand, and as he did so, a very light and distinct jingling noise cut through the darkness.

"Wait, is that...are those Mom's keys?!"

"Yep. Found them hidden behind that stupid little elephant statue on the bookshelf. Now get the hell out of bed, get dressed, and meet me in the living room in five minutes. I don't know about you, but I could go for a cheeseburger!"

"Yay!" Talia whispered excitedly as she leapt out of bed. Quinn left her room and went to the living room to wait for her. However, fifteen minutes later, Talia had still not made it to the living room. Quinn was getting both frustrated and nervous. Just as he started to get up and go to her room to hurry her along, though, Talia came around the corner.

"Okay, let's go!" she said enthusiastically.

Quinn stood frozen in place and stared at his sister.

"The hell's your problem, Quinn? If we're going, then let's go!"

"Where...when did you get those?" Quinn asked, pointing at Talia.

"These what?"

"Those..." Quinn gulped mid-sentence. "...jean shorts."

"Oh, well, I've had these for a couple of years. I left them here when I left for college. I tried to put them on a few weeks ago when I got back, but I couldn't quite get them buttoned. Guess I've lost an inch or something during this cleanse. Woo-hoo!"

Quinn continued to stare, still not moving.

"Are you, like, checking me out or something? Because that's pretty pervy of you if you are."

Quinn finally snapped out of his stupor.

"No! I mean, you do look nice. I guess I just got used to you lounging around the house in sweats and stuff. Just didn't expect to see you wearing something so...clingy. And your shirt is...well it's not the same baggy t-shirt you've been wearing for the past seven days in a row. You just...you look good."

Quinn blushed, realizing that it may have seemed like he was checking out his sister. Which, he was, but he didn't really want it to seem like he was.

Talia walked up to her brother, smiling, and lightly patted him on his chest.

"Thanks...perv."

"Whatever, let's just go. Why did you feel the need to put on nice clothes, anyway? We're just going through a drive-thru."

"I know, but sometimes a girl's just gotta feel pretty. And this seemed like the best moment I was going to have for that occasion for a long long time."

They very quietly made their way out the front door. Talia took the keys, opened the driver's side door, and made to start the car.

"No!" Quinn called out as loudly as he felt comfortable.

"What?!"

"Don't start it here! We need to push it down the street a little bit and then start it. Otherwise Mom will hear us."

"Why do I get the sense that you've done this before?" Talia asked.

"Because I have."

"Ooh, little brother having some late-night hookups?"

"No, sometimes I sneak out at night to go to a friend's house to play Dungeons and Dragons."

"Scandalous."

They got the car down the road and safely started. Quinn ended up driving, Talia's thought process being that the driver would get in more trouble if they got caught.

"Hey Quinn?" Talia said as they continued to drive.

"What's up?"

"What exactly did you mean earlier when you said I looked good?"

"Oh god, please don't make me relive that experience. Yes, I was briefly checking you out, but dammit, I'm hungry, I'm horny, I'm all cooped up...can we just forget that it ever happened?"

"Calm down, buddy. I just want to know, like, do you think I've lost weight? Do I look thinner? Healthier?"

"Oh, uh, well yeah. I mean, you weren't fat before or anything. You've always looked pretty good to me. But yes, you do look healthier now."

"Oh."

They continued to drive in silence for a while.

"I feel healthier," Talia said after a while.

"Huh?"

"My body, I don't know, just feels better. I can't really explain how, but this cleanse, as much as it sucks, has had some positive affects on me."

"Right. I know exactly what you mean. Can't really say why, but I feel pretty damn good compared to how I was feeling before. And...well, nevermind."

"What?"

Quinn drove a little further before he continued.

"I've enjoyed getting to know you again. I like spending time with you, and now that we don't really have any other options, I feel reconnected with you. It's been nice, and I hope that when the cleanse is over we don't go back to how we were before."

Talia smiled at her brother and put her hand on his leg.

"We won't. Promise."

"Cool."

They drove a little further.

"This has been a big night for you, Quinn."

"How so?"

"Well, you've checked out my ass and shared some pretty deep feelings of yours with me."

"Hey! How did you know I was looking at your ass? I just said I was looking at your shorts."

"Oh please, my ass is incredible and you know it. Besides, you pretty much just admitted that you were."

"Goddammit."

Fortunately for Quinn, at that moment they pulled into the restaurant and Quinn circled around to the drive-thru speaker.

"Hey, can I get three cheeseburgers with everything, two orders of fries, a large soda, and a chocolate milkshake. Oh, and two of those turnover thingies."

Quinn leaned over to his sister.

"What do you want me to order for you?" he asked.

"For me? Wait, my order wasn't mixed in with everything else you just said?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Talia. Of course it wasn't."

"You're such a pig. Just get me a cheeseburger."

They pulled around, paid for their food, and parked the car. Quinn swiftly rummaged around in the bag and grabbed the first thing he got his hands on, which was one of the burgers.

"Wait! Quinn, don't."

Quinn froze, mouth wide open, burger sitting right in front of his face.

"Don't what?"

"Let's not do this. You've said yourself how good you feel from being on this cleanse. We shouldn't eat this food, we'll feel so shitty if we do. I like how I look and feel right now, and I how you looked at me tonight in my shorts, even if it was a little creepy. This was a mistake."

Talia might as well have elbowed Quinn in the stomach and kneed him in his groin. For a second, it appeared as if he was literally going to start crying.

"But, but...smell!" Quinn pleaded as he pushed the cheeseburger directly under her nose.

"I know, I know. It smells amazing. But all this hard work we've done over the past week will be all for not if we eat this. Please Quinn, just put the cheeseburger in the bag. I really want to finish this cleanse, and I can't do it without you."

Talia grabbed his hand and held it in hers, then flashed him the saddest, most pitiful looked she could muster. She knew she had him instantly. In a matter of seconds, he had wrapped his burger back up and put it back in the bag.

"Damn you to hell, Talia, you manipulative bitch."

She leaned over to him, placed her hand on one side of face, and kissed him on his cheek.

"Love you too, bro."

Even though it was dark, Talia was pretty sure she had just made Quinn blush again.

"So what the hell do we do with all this food, then?" Quinn asked after a moment.

"Let's drive around until we find a homeless person and give it all to them."

Quinn looked at his sister with a mixture of awe and confusion.

"Eating healthy, being sweet to your brother, and now feeding the poor. What the hell is this cleanse doing to you, Talia?"

Talia just smiled as Quinn drove out of the parking lot, the two of them in search of a hungry beneficiary.

*

The cleanse continued without so much as a hiccup for the next several days. Granted, no on in the house, including Penny, seemed to be enjoying the food any more than they had been, but everyone was certainly getting along and enjoying each other's company a lot more than they ever had in recent years. They played games, watched movies together, even went on walks. Sometimes all three of them would hang out, and when their mom was too busy, the siblings would always find something to do together.

Talia and Quinn found themselves getting quite a bit closer with one another, quite literally. When they'd watch movies, they would sit right beside each other on the couch, leaving a large part of the sofa wide open. When they went on walks, their hands and arms would often graze up against each other due to how close they walked side by side. Both of them noticed the change in their growing physical closeness, but neither said a word out loud about it. Talia wondered if she was subconsciously putting herself physically closer to her brother, partly out of missing her boyfriend, and partly out of how much his presence helped keep her strong enough to continue to make it through the cleanse. Quinn genuinely didn't know what to think about it all, but he knew he enjoyed the closeness.

One evening, the whole family sat in the living room watching reruns of their favorite show, Friends.

"I'd do Joey," Penny all of a sudden burst out.

"Ew, Mom!" Quinn cried out.

"What? I have needs. It's been so long since I've had a date, and I'm feeling pretty good about my body lately. Maybe I need to try one of those websites..."

"What, like a dating website?" Talia asked.

"No, I mean a porn website. Quinn, do you have any recommendations?"

Quinn covered his face with a couch pillow.

"This isn't real, it's all just a horrible nightmare, and I'll wake up any second now," he said in a muffled voice from behind the pillow.

"Eh, that's alright, we're probably not into the same types of things anyway. I'll just go check some out for myself. Well, goodnight kids."

"G'night, Mom," Talia replied. Quinn remained silent.

After their mother left the room, Quinn turned toward his sister, who tonight was sitting on the opposite end of the couch as him.

"Can you believe her?" Quinn said.

"Oh, come on, get over it," Talia replied. "Mom is a very attractive woman, and she needs sex just like the rest of us."

"I might puke."

"Oh, so it's okay for you to think your sister's hot, but it's gross when it's your mother?"

"Wha...? I didn't...I don't even...I never said that I think you're hot!"

"But you do think it, right?"

Quinn opened his mouth to respond, but couldn't find any words as a rebuttal. So instead he just went with a classic sibling response.

"Just shut-up!"

Talia laughed heartily, but decided that she had embarrassed her brother enough for the moment. They continued to watch the show for a while, Talia every once in a while stealing a glance at Quinn. He seemed so far away at the other end of the couch. Lately they always sat together, and she found herself longing for the physical closeness of his body close to hers.

She decided that it would be too weird to move all the way down the couch just to sit next to him, but figured she could get away with a more playful move of putting her feet on his lap. She turned herself over into a laying position, turned sideways so that she was facing the television, and placed her feet squarely in the middle of Quinn's lap. She took care to make very exaggerated movements so that he knew she was just playing around. This made it not seem weird, but still accomplished the whole physical closeness thing.

Talia stared at her brother, waiting to see what his response would be. He looked sideways at her, smiled, and in typical sibling fashion, pushed her feet firmly off of him, causing her to fall completely to the floor.

She stood up, brushed herself off, and, undeterred, laid back down on the couch and returned her feet to his lap. He waited a minute this time, and then once again shoved her to the floor. She stood up, laid back down, and did it again.

"You'll keep this up all night, won't you?" he asked.

"One-thousand percent I will. It's not like I have anything else to do, anyway. Your move."

Quinn sighed, rolled his eyes, and continued to watch the show. After a while, he placed one of his hands on the top of her foot, near her ankle. Then, he moved his hand up and took one of her toes in his fingers. Talia looked at him and saw that he seemed to be examining her feet in a very peculiar way.

"Whatcha doin' down there?" Talia asked.

"Nothin'. You have nice looking feet."

"Uh...thanks, I guess. I grew them myself."

"I like your toenail polish. What is that, periwinkle?"

He rolled her big toe around in between his fingers. It found oddly good to Talia, sending slight shivers down the length of her body.

"Uh-huh," she responded quietly.

"Cool."

For the entirety of the rest of the episode, Quinn moved his fingers around her feet, poking and prodding at various places. It wasn't exactly what you would call a foot massage, but it still felt really good to Talia. He lightly traced the tops of her feet with one hand, and used the other to gently rub the bottoms. Talia's eyes closed, blocking out all other senses in order to focus on the beautiful sensations she was feeling from her brother's touch.

She got so lost in the moment that she hardly noticed that he was slowing down his movements drastically. Before she even realized it, he had stopped completely. She opened her eyes to find that Quinn had fallen asleep while rubbing her feet. It was a very sweet sight to her.

"Hey Quinn?" she called out lightly.

His eyes opened and he looked at her.

"Oops, guess I fell asleep."

"That's alright, it's late."

"Guess I'll go to bed."

"Sure. Unless..."

Quinn looked questioningly as his sister.

"Unless what?"

"I mean, we could watch one more episode, if you want."

"I'd love to, Talia, but I don't think I'll make it through."

"Just...sit with me for one more episode?"

Quinn smiled at his sister.

"Okay, sure. But sorry in advance for when I fall asleep."

"Here, why don't you just lay down."

Talia sat up and scooted back down to her end of the couch.

"Lay your head here," she sat as she patted her leg.

Quinn looked at her bare leg where she was patting. He knew he shouldn't notice these things about his sister, but he thought Talia had amazingly hot legs. He was a little bit inappropriately excited about putting his face there, he had to admit.