Crank Chapters 171-180 Summary

Chapter 171: We Bumped Up the Road

On the way to Chamberlain Flat, Brendan and Kristina drink and drive while navigating some pretty treacherous terrain.
In the midst of all this, Kristina checks out the model-worthy bone structure in his face and his Mediterranean skin. She thinks about how every guy she's kissed has a different style and smell. In the case of Brendan, she describes him as "Bree with a penis." That can't be good.

It's just after midnight and the party is in high gear. Kristina does marijuana and crank and smokes a cigarette, which puts her in just the right frame of mind.
She notices that girls she used to envy at school are now staring at her and want to know her. She is glad that instead of getting to know lame Kristina, they will now know Bree.

Brendan asks Kristina to take a walk with him, which is pretty much code for "I want to make out." Things get a little more out of hand than Kristina would like, though, but when she tells Brendan to stop, he won't.
He asks her why she called him if she didn't want to have sex and she responds by saying she's a virgin. He doesn't believe her.

Kristina doesn't understand the whole mystique around what she calls "the v thing." She wonders if the idea of virginity turns guys on because they get to possess you, in a way, by taking something from you.
Either way, Brendan tells her he'll forgive her provided that she lets him be "first." She's not sure what she needs forgiveness for, but agrees.

Kristina climbs back through the window with her hair messed up and her makeup smeared and is glad she's not walking through the front door like this. She lies awake in bed thinking about Brendan until the sun comes up.

The first day of school is a nightmare. Kristina almost gets lost several times and can't follow her teachers' explanations of expectations and assignment schedules.
She also spends most of the day avoiding eye contact with anyone, especially the school police, teachers, and Trent and Sarah.
Her body is also out of control. She's nearly starved from not eating since the Saturday night crank binge and just wants to pass out.
Finally, the last bell rings.

With the first day of school behind her, Kristina rides the bus home and tries to anticipate her next move. She knows it's time to gear up for the new school year and get back into study mode, but the truth is that she has no idea how she's even going to make it to school tomorrow.
Plus her family's waiting at home to hear all about how the day went. Gag. She finds that although she's spent the summer scorning the monotony of her life, she now kind of wants it back.

Thankfully Kristina's mom isn't home, so she doesn't have to face the inevitable barrage of questions. She goes to the fridge, pigs out on grapes and ice cream, then goes upstairs and crashes.
Hours later, her mom finds her passed out and throws ice water on her to revive her.

The ice water in the face makes Kristina want to scream. Instead, she makes a really horrible decision: She drags herself downstairs for dinner and hurls an f-bomb at her mom.

In general, saying the F word to your mom is a pretty bad idea. In this case, it makes Kristina's mom mad enough to slap her across the face and demand that she never say it to her again.
Both of them break down crying and her mom asks Kristina what's going on with her; Kristina can't bring herself to tell the truth, though, so she just says she's sorry.
Kristina's mom asks her if she's in trouble and if her new friends are "okay." Kristina considers telling the truth, but then comes to the decision that she can't handle the fallout.