arvin's thoughts often drifted when he was laying asphalt. it was hard work, and his thoughts helped to distract him from his aching back and sweating hands. he'd gotten much more muscular since he'd started the job. on this particular day, his mind was particularly occupied with a battle between the topic he should be pondering and the topic that kept invading his mind.
the topic he should've been pondering was the errand that his grandmother needed him to run to new haven. for some reason, the post hadn't been running to coal creek, and she was behind on some tax payments that she needed him to take them to some accountant in new haven. he had the route carefully planned out, and it was only an hour drive not including stops for gas.
the topic that kept invading his mind was none other than calypso. though he didn't know it, arvin was feeling the same force that drew willard to charlotte all those years ago. he couldn't stop thinking about how her plump lips curled around the cigarette to take a drag, and how her thick straight hair was blacker than the night sky. her long eyelashes and steely gray eyes danced in his mind, and he knew he'd fallen down a hole when he started thinking about the perfect contrast between her soft features and chiseled bone structure. her face was a work of art. he couldn't help wondering what was under her dress, and if it was as perfect as her face. he'd been with his fair share of girls, but none of them could even begin to compare to calypso, looks and otherwise.
it was late at night when he got off work. it was dark by the time he got back to his house, and any chance he had of reaching new haven by a decent hour was shot. he figured he could just drop the paperwork in the accountant's mailbox, so he took his time showering and getting on the road. he found a radio station and allowed himself to drive on autopilot, since he knew the route well. for awhile, his mind was blissfully empty. he pulled up to the accountant's office, a stern-looking brick building, and dropped the forms in the mailbox.
he got back into his truck, and realized that he was starving and thirsty. he saw a large neon sign that said aphrodite's bar. it was close to the interstate, and there was bound to be some sort of food there. if not, he could definitely get a drink.
the windows and doors were covered with black curtains, but arvin was desperate. he pushed the door open to reveal a huge open room with colored lights and smoke in the air. sensual music blasted deafeningly from the speakers. a small stage with three floor-to-ceiling poles sat front and center. there were several tables with cheap velour armchairs instead of regular chairs, but most of the customers were gathered up around the stage like it was a concert, crowding around the poles. each pole had a half-naked woman twirling on it.
arvin was completely in shock. he'd heard of bars with whores and naked girls, but he never thought that there'd be one in west virginia. still, they appeared to serve drinks, so he did his best to avoid looking at the dancers and sat down at the table. a scantily clad waitress came up and asked what he'd be having, so he just ordered water, not wanting to stay any longer than he had to. his eyes slipped to the stage when he saw calypso.
she was wearing a green lingerie set with black pumps and dark makeup, swaying her hips to the music. she twirled around the pole and draped her body over it horizantally as men cheered and threw bills onto the stage. she was totally in her element, dipping down and twisting gracefully in sync with the music. arvin's pants tightened, and he made his way up to the stage, water forgotten. he wasn't sure how he managed to shove his way to the front of the crowd, but he soon had the best view of her. he stood there as if in a trance, watching her body move in pure shock. he knew calypso wasn't innocent, but he'd never expected this.
she was slim and willowy, but she had perfectly defined curves. the lingerie hugged her body perfectly, showing just enough ass to be vulgar and allowing her hard nipples to peek through the lace of her brassiere. it was showing too much and not enough all at the same time, and arvin couldn't look away. the way she carried herself, the way her long legs wrapped around the pole, the way she threw her jet black hair backwards. arvin was mesmerized.
he was snapped out of his trance when she accidentally made eye contact with him. her eyes widened, and her mouth fell into a perfect little 'o.' she abruptly stopped dancing, to the dismay of the men in the crowd, grabbed her money, and ran backstage, arvin's shouts for her to stop falling on deaf ears.
he ran around to the back of the building, reasoning that the dancers must exit in the back, but he didn't get there in time to stop her. instead, he managed to catch a glimpse of her climbing into a mustang, which peeled off as soon as she closed the door, and she was gone.
it was a disappointing drive back to coal creek. it was surprisingly easy to process what he saw once he slowed down and thought about it. calypso had always been in tune with her sexuality, far more than any of the secretive church girls he'd had in the back of his truck, so this really wasn't all that surprising. he supposed it only made sense for a girl like her. still, he wanted to talk to her about it, let her know that there was nothing to be ashamed of and that he wouldn't tell anyone. it was only common courtesy, or so he told himself. he really just wanted an excuse to talk to her. she fascinated him to no end.
the next morning, he took another shower and waited for her outside the school building. he cursed when she walked out with donna. donna was cute, but she wasn't as attractive as calypso. arvin was about to give up, but donna apparently left something in the school and beckoned for calypso to go ahead.
she walked towards the general store, like always. her worn-out combat boots kicked up dirt, and she kept her head down, a sharp contrast from her usual model-esque strut. arvin waited for her to get onto the wide dirt road of main street, and pulled up beside her. she noticed his truck and started walking faster, never making eye contact with him. he sped up a little and turned closer to her. she accidentally caught his eye.
"calypso!" he called.
upon hearing her name, she dropped her rucksack and bolted for the woods. arvin cursed and quickly parked his truck haphazardly, got out, and ran after her. he wasn't sure how long they ran through the woods. fortunately, they were only going in one direction, so they wouldn't get lost. calypso was a surprisingly good runner. she was light on her feet, leaping over logs and bounding through the forest like she weighed nothing. arvin managed to stay relatively close behind her, but soon her stamina betrayed her and she slowed down. arvin managed to catch up to her until he was right on her tail.
"calypso!" he yelled again.
before she could respond, a root caught her foot and she fell hard to the ground. she struggled to her feet, but it was too late. arvin had already caught up to her. he helped her up, keeping a firm grip on her waist. she tried to bolt again, but he wouldn't let go.
"let go of me!" she hissed, struggling to free herself as he tightened his hold on her.
"not until you talk to me," he said, wrapping his arm fully around her waist.
she threw her head back and headbutted him in the face. blood gushed down his nose and he let go of her in surprise, but he was faster than she was and he caught her by the upper arms and slammed her against the trunk of a tree.
calypso looked at him, wide eyed, and opened her mouth like she was going to scream, but no sound came out. her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she crumpled to the ground, unconscious.
arvin began to panic. he knelt beside her and turned her over. she was breathing and had a pulse. he shook her a couple times, to no response. he cursed to himself and wondered what he should do. the doctor wouldn't be able to see her for hours, and by then she might wake up. even if she didn't, where was he supposed to take her that the doctor could even go? he briefly wondered if he should take her to emma, but he knew how much his grandmother disapproved of calypso.
he decided to carry her back to the truck. he lifted her up bridal style and began the trek back to the road. they really hadn't ran all that far, and calypso couldn't have been much more than a hundred pounds, but arvin's racing mind made it pass slower than molasses. once they finally did get back to the car, he put her in the front seat, her head lolling against the headrest, and drove to a fairly secluded spot in the woods where he waited for her to wake up.
when calypso finally did come to, she saw arvin sitting guiltily in his truck. the events of the past 24 hours came rushing back to her, but she was still too weak to run. she slumped in the seat and let out a groan.
"i'm so sorry, darlin'," arvin said quickly. "i didn't mean to--"
"i know you didn't," said calypso irritably, ignoring the way her heart sped up when he called her darlin'.
"i just wanted to talk to you," he said.
"about what?" said calypso, deciding it would be the best course of action to simply play dumb until he gave up.
"about that night at the bar," he said.
"what bar?"
"you know what bar." he said it with such authority that calypso went weak in the knees.
"okay," she said, her throat running dry and blood rushing to her cheeks and she fidgeted with the hem of her sundress. she prepared for a holier-than-thou lecture about the "sanctity of her body" and her "holy gift" and how her "body is a temple".
"i just wanted to tell you that there's nothing to be ashamed of," he said simply. "i mean, i get why you do it?"
"what?" she asked dumbly, completely taken aback.
"i get why you do it," he said. "i mean, it seems like a good way to make money. there really ain't anything wrong with it once you take out all the jesus bullshit, as long as you're okay with everything that happens. you are, right?"
"yeah, of course," said calypso.
"then there's nothing wrong with it," he said, shrugging. "i figure it's your body, so you can do what you want. like i said before, you're a pretty girl and it seems like a good way to make money if you're cut out for it. but i'm not gonna tell anyone, so don't worry about that."
"you think i'm pretty?" calypso blurted out without thinking. she wasn't an idiot; she knew she was pretty, it just felt different to hear him say it. why was she even focusing on that? he had literally just told her that he didn't care about her biggest insecurity.
"of course," he said, like he was surprised she'd even question it. "look at you, darlin'."
"and you don't think i'm--"
"nah," he said, before she could get the rest of the words out. "i don't."
"good," said calypso, internally beating herself for letting down her tough façade.
"you ain't so mean, are you?" he asked playfully, as though he'd read her mind.
"guess not," she said, laughing ruefully.
"can i ask you something?" he said, suddenly serious.
"sure," she said. she scuffed her feet in apprehension.
"why'd you come to coal creek?"
she sighed dejectedly. she knew he'd ask about it, but she might as well tell him. "can we take a drive?"