Brandon and Kelly are surprised when they find Erica Steele, Dylan's younger half-sister, working the streets. They turn to Pam, a social worker, to help them find Erica when she runs from them. Meanwhile, Steve is struck with uncertainty after he is mistaken as Zack's father. Life then takes an unexpected turn when a pregnant girlfriend from Steve's past claims that her unborn child is his. In a desperate attempt to hold onto After Dark, David meets with Everett Sands, a loan shark, and Donna finally learns about David's financial problems after she discovers that David has forged her signature on checks to pay club bills. After breaking up with Valerie, an angry and frustrated Noah lands in jail after a drunken barroom brawl. Brandon bails Noah out of jail. Noah then unloads his secret past to Brandon - of being heir to millions, from which he ran away because his family holds Noah responsible for the his fiancée's death 1 year ago, in a drunk driving crash.

After throwing David out of the beachfront apartment, Donna meets with Noah who takes her on sailing, then rescues a bankrupt David from his loan shark who wants a huge payback, with interest. Meanwhile, Erica runs away from Brandon and Kelly to go back to her pimp, Riggs. After a heated confrontation, Erica comes to her senses and helps Brandon write her life story for his newspaper, but Brandon soon finds himself in trouble when he refuses to reveal his source to an A.D.A. who wants to prosecute Erica's pimp. Carly persuades a reluctant Steve to take a paternity test to find out if Jodi, his former flame, is really pregnant with his baby.

Following Brandon's arrest, sparks fly between him and Kelly over his ongoing refusal to reveal the name of his source, until Erica proposes a way to help him entrap Riggs in a sting operation. Meanwhile, Valerie seeks to learn who anonymously helped David pay off his loan shark, and learns the truth about Noah and his wealthy background. At the same time, David's jealousy and pride get the worst out of him after he rejects help from Donna after a fire breaks out at After Dark. Steve & Jodi, then Steve & Rush, talk about paternity and if he is ready for fatherhood; Steve goes to Carly for comfort. Kelly volunteers for a new job at the free clinic and meets the volunteer doctor Monahan. Noah starts dating Donna after telling her about his wealthy family.