Ava decides to be proactive in her life's course and asks Simon to marry him, only Nikki is crushed by the news, believing that Johnny would make a more suitable husband.
Johnny decides to invest his funds into a restaurant venture and finds that his new behind-the-scenes business partner is an attractive, divorced woman. Susannah readies herself for a new life in New York, but finds herself taken into police custody when her boss is brought up on fraud charges. Meanwhile, Bradin's suspension from the surf team prompts him to use, and subsequently overdose on, performance-enhancing substances.
After allowing Bradin to rejoin the surf team, Ava is shocked to learn that he is neglecting his studies and is blowing off his tutoring, resulting in poor grades. Jay's relationship with Ava similarly begins to sour when he comes to Bradin's defense. Meanwhile, Jay is confronted by Mona, who wants him to admit his feelings for Ava.
Ava is insulted by Jay after he implies that her decision to utilize her friends' help in raising the kids is a poor one. Nikki's decision to run for president of her school class causes further complications for her friendship with Cameron. Meanwhile, Erika returns and she and Jay try to move past their mutual hurt.
Simon spots Ava and Johnny having a moment together and decides it would be best if he and Ava pushed their wedding date up a week, a move which makes Nikki and Derrick skeptical. Meanwhile, Bradin and Calllie consider taking their romance to the next stage.
Nikki begins to exhibit some guilt over her role in the called-off wedding of Ava and Simon, even though Ava seems eerily at peace with what transpired on the big day. Meanwhile, Callie accuses Bradin of being purely motivated in their relationship by sex, while Mona tells Ava to keep away from Johnny when she worries that Ava is a threat to their burgeoning relationship.
Ava decides to open up to Johnny about her true feelings for him, while Bradin realizes he is in love with Erika and decides to break up with Callie, but his new relationship has the group disapproving. Meanwhile, Ava, Susannah, and Colby consider utilizing a pop artist's help with their clothing line.
Nikki develops a crush on a student who works with her on the school's literary magazine. Ava has reservations about Bradin's relationship with Erika as well as with letting him go away for a month and missing studies to get surfing training, but Jay soon becomes an advocate for letting him go on the trip. Meanwhile, Derrick tries to look for Johnny at Mona's apartment.
After returning from his months-long Hawaiian surf tour, Bradin is told by a surfing company executive that he should get rid of Jay and find a suitable manager to help make him a bonafide media attraction.
Under the influence of several older surfers whom he has befriended, Bradin turns Jay away and ignores his advice and ends up causing Erika some embarrassment.
Nikki and Cameron find themselves at a police station when Cameron's father is arrested on suspicion of DUI. Nikki soon learns that besides having an alcohol problem, Cameron's dad may also be abusing Cameron. Ava tries to coax Johnny into moving back into the house. Meanwhile, Bradin gets a date with the sister of a friend while Jay becomes interested in a single mother.
Bradin begins to think he might prefer medicine to surfing after he rescues a friend from drowning. Meanwhile, Jay begins to dote over his new girlfriend's son, which causes a jealous Derrick to take drastic measures to gain the other boy's attention.
Nikki quietly tries to reunite Ava and Johnny, but Johnny is hesitant about going back into the relationship once more. Bradin decides he's had it with surfing when his sponsors try to turn him into the image of the bad boy he doesn't want to be. Bradin also must confront the possibility of a future with Erika and, similarly, Johnny must make a decision about Ava once and for all when she tells him that she loves him.