Ryan Matthews returns to his job at West Beverly High which causes a mixed reaction for both Kelly, as well as Silver who finds herself writing a class paper on the book 'Heart of Darkness' to win back his trust after he rejects her from his class. Meanwhile, Annie decides to audition for the school's drama production of 'Antony and Cleopatra' and sets her sights on the lead, while she asks Ethan to audition for a role in the play so they can be closer together, while Annie also has a run-in with her one-time boyfriend Ty Collins. Adrianna becomes more uncertain about her pregnancy and refuses to deal with the problem. When her mother goes missing, Naomi is asked by her father, Charles, to move in with him and his mistress at their Malibu beach house which makes the situation very awkward and uncomfortable for everyone. Elsewhere, Silver and Dixon continue to experience bumps in their relationship which leads him to decide if he wants to end his romance with her.

Christina invites Dixon and Navid and the rest of the students to a house party where the band Carolina Liar will perform and Navid moves on from his relationship with Adrianna by connecting with a fellow Iranian girl named Nika. Meanwhile, Ethan gets involved in a traffic accident with a girl named Rhonda Kimble, a student at West Beverly whom he feels guilty about not knowing her since she's a long-time student. Adrianna and Naomi try to debate about how to tell both her mother Constance, as well as Ty, about Adrianna's pregnancy. While Ty takes the news very calmly, Adrianna fears a violent reaction from her selfish mother whom relies and takes advantage of Adrianna's acting career. But Adrianna finds out that Ty's parents want to bribe her to get an abortion and keep the news a secret. Eventually, Adrianna broadcasts a video announcement of her pregnancy to the entire school.

When Liam transfers to West Beverly, Naomi finds herself stunned but captivated by the intense, handsome bad-boy who takes her out on weeknights to partake in illegal street racing. Meanwhile, Annie drifts further apart from Ethan and spends an evening under the stars with fellow thespian Max. Annie also begins to suspect that Rhonda is not who she appears to be and also correctly suspects Rhonda of using her medical condition to play on Ryan's sympathies. Eventually, Ethan tells Rhonda that he's not interested in a relationship with her, but he breaks up with Annie over their differences. Elsewhere, Dixon begins to question his relationship with Silver, as well as her mental capacity when she makes a sex tape of them and shows it at part of her film project for Ryan's class. But it takes a turn when Silver finally reveals her dangerously disturbed personality when she breaks into Ryan's apartment and threatens him with physical harm.

Following their engagement, Navid and Adrianna celebrate their respective bachelor and bachelorette parties. While Adrianna feasts with Annie, Naomi, Silver, and their female friends at the Wilson home, Liam takes Navid, Ethan, and Dixon to have a wild night on the town with some college girls at a burlesque club. Meanwhile, sparks fly between Ryan and Jen, and Dixon continues to feel unappreciated by Silver. Jen also persuades Naomi to stand up to their father as well as move in with her at a local house, while Naomi continues to grow more insecure as well as jealous over Liam when she sees him talking with Annie whom he sees as naive and holding back her own dark side.