Whitley plans to sleep with Dwayne for the first time on his birthday. The public speaking professor assigns the students to write their own eulogies. A young woman named Josie stuns everyone with her speech, in which she reveals that she contracted AIDS through unprotected sex in high school. Gina and Terrence display their ignorance about the disease and are afraid to be around Josie. Kim and Mr. Gaines defend her and advise the duo to become more informed. Ron worries that he could fall victim to AIDS because of his history of casual sex. He and Dwayne decide to undergo HIV testing. Whitley, still shaken by the news of Josie's illness, decides that she just isn't ready for sex.

Dwayne falls apart in the aftermath of his kiss with Whitley. He cannot sleep due to recurring nightmares, and lets the apartment turn into a pig pen. Kinu becomes extremely bossy and territorial; she argues with Ron (who is tired of her constant presence at the apartment), then tries to bar Whitley from a party honoring Dwayne's and her six-month anniversary. Ron, hoping to drive Kinu over the edge, hires cash-poor Whitley as a housekeeper. Dwayne's mother arrives in the midst of the women's sniping because she had sensed that something was wrong with her ""chipmunk."" Mrs. Wayne doesn't like Kinu any more than she does Whitley, so Whitley tries to take advantage of the situation by buttering her up. Kinu finally snaps and takes it upon herself to fire Whitley. Dwayne admits to Kinu that he cannot shake his feelings for Whitley. They decide to break up.

Whitley catches Ron sneaking Freddie out of his apartment at six o'clock in the morning. Dwayne and Whitley cannot find any time together because he is working three jobs in an effort to support her. Dwayne expresses his frustration to Kim. Kim tries to convince Whitley to talk things out with Dwayne, but she hangs up on her. Whitley calls Montel Williams' talk show and confesses that she and Dwayne have not been having sex. She does not realize that Gina is addicted to the show and has organized a dorm-wide viewing party in the lounge. All of the girls come over to Whitley's house and offer advice. Lena, Gina and Charmaine suggest a girls' night out to take her mind off things. Whitley, Kim and Freddie go to a club alone because the others are under the drinking age. Freddie confesses to Kim about her attraction to Ron. Kim already knew what was going on, but thanks her for her honesty. Kim dances with Spencer, her lab partner. Whitley goes home to find Dwayne waiting for her, and the

Whitley's mother surprises Whitley and Dwayne by coming to visit for Thanksgiving. Whitley is too ashamed to admit that she is unemployed and that the couple was recently robbed. Marion stuns Whitley by introducing her fiancé, Malik, a much younger man who sells oils and poetry for a living. Although Dwayne believes that Whitley should let her mother live her own life, she fears that Malik is a golddigger. She asks Kim to come over and flirt with Malik in the hopes of driving the couple apart. Just when it seems that things can't get any worse, Dwayne's mother (who has not spoken to him since he married Whitley) shows up on the Waynes' doorstep. Freddie tries to avoid Ron and re-commit to her relationship with Shazza. She even dons her old ""earthy"" look for a rally on behalf of Haitian refugees, but a law school assignment conflicts with the protest.

Mr. Gaines leaves his son in charge of the Pit when he and Velma join Whitley and Dwayne for a weekend getaway.

Lena Horne travels to Hillman to dedicate a scholarship in her grandmother's memory.

Dean Davenport expels Terrell for packing a gun; Spencer aims to marry Kim, but she keeps shooting him down.

Dwayne helps Whitley with her marketing project, but turns her down when she offers to take him to dinner. Ron tells Dwayne that he is being stupid and warns that he will lose Whitley unless he lets go of the past. Dwayne surprises Whitley by showing up at her apartment with dinner (while she is cleaning the oven in sweats and a jheri curl cap). Dwayne asks her to explain some of her actions, such as refusing to answer his letters during the summer and kissing Ron right in front of him. He is still unsure about whether he should trust her. Whitley concedes that she was wrong to play games; she says that she has come to appreciate everything Dwayne has done for her, and just wants the chance to be with him. She admits that she is in love with him. They are beset by a constant series of interruptions, and must finally seek refuge on the fire escape. Dwayne tells Whitley that he loves her, and they celebrate their new relationship with a kiss. During history class, Ron derides the homeles

Freddie organizes a mentorship program for teenagers detained at juvenile hall. They can receive parole by completing a week-long project. Dwayne is assigned two young gang members, who continually fight after learning that they are from rival sets. Much of the tension stems from the fact that members of one boy's gang killed the other's cousin. Dwayne tries to get the boys to turn away from violence and set some goals, but they don't think they have anything to live for. He tries to talk to their parents, with disastrous results. Billy's proud but violent father does not appreciate Dwayne's interference; he shoves him around and threatens him. Dwayne again emphasizes the fact that the boys can have futures; he tells them that they should not place limits on themselves because of the environment around them. Dwayne eventually gets through to them, as they perform a rap song that preaches for an end to violence. Billy's father listens to his son's performance and seems somewhat impresse

Whitley panics about spending the summer alone; Dwayne tries a new tack with Denise; and Maggie holds a yard sale.

Whitley receives a phone call from Julian and agrees to have dinner with him. She is shocked to discover that he is engaged to a runway model turned translator who speaks six languages. The couple is to live in Paris. Whitley cannot come to grips with this news, and begins to pine for the life of luxury that she gave up when she dumped Julian. A frustrated Dwayne comes to believe that nothing he does will ever be good enough for her. Whitley goes to see a shrink, who recommends that she seek closure with Julian and do whatever she can to win back Dwayne. Dwayne refuses to accept Whitley's apology, even after she begs for forgiveness. He assures Ron that he isn't breaking up with her; he simply wants to watch a basketball game in peace. Jaleesa goes all out to secure the account of a potential client who is obsessed with sports.

Shazza Zulu, a student in his sixth year of undergraduate work, publishes a book discussing the sexist behavior of men at Hillman. The women take his words to heart; they get really worked up and decide to boycott all men. The men respond with a boycott of their own. Everyone gets upset with Dwayne and Whitley for refusing to take part, and Whitley's friends try to convince her that Dwayne is fooling around with the female students he tutors. After a food fight breaks out at the campus movie theater, Dean Hughes calls a summit to get the two sides to work out their differences. The students turn against Shazza, who insists that he is trying to promote harmony. He singles out Kim as someone who has turned against her race by dating a white man. She tells him off and storms out. Ron, who had earlier expressed a similar sentiment, apologizes to Kim and admits that he was jealous.

Charmaine annoys the other students with her pushy attitude in Dwayne's statistics class. Someone tapes a sign to her back that reads ""digit ho."" She assumes that Terrell is responsible, and he refuses to apologize. She calls him a hood, and they nearly get into a fight. Charmaine feels that Terrell humiliated her by publicly calling her a whore. She files a formal complaint. Although she finds his behavior deplorable, Freddie offers to represent Terrell in student court. She defends his right to free expression, points out that he was joking, and gets Charmaine to admit that she had also insulted students. Freddie finally realizes that Gina was actually the one who taped the sign on Charmaine's back. Terrell explains why he didn't deny the charges. He didn't think anyone would believe him because they had already assumed that he was a thug. Charmaine and Terrell make peace, and Gina is placed on academic probation.

Dwayne discovers that Whitley has goaded Kim into letting her assist in the planning of her own surprise birthday party. Dwayne takes Whitley to a cheap dinner and tells her that he scrapped the party. She feels that she deserves a nice birthday after her rough year, while he insists that she should have trusted him to plan the party on his own. Dwayne sends Whitley into the kitchen, then sneaks all of their friends into the living room to surprise her. Charmaine and Terrell struggle badly in French class. They refuse to accept help from prize pupil Gina, and all other tutors dismiss them as a lost cause. Terrified at the prospect of having their perfect grade point averages ruined, they hide a baby monitor in Gina's bag in an attempt to learn the contents of the oral midterm. Charmaine and Terrell get caught and automatically fail the midterm, leaving Charmaine humiliated. She admits that she wouldn't have been so desperate to get a good grade if Gina hadn't taunted her about her str

Whitley tries to remake a tomboy; Ron helps Freddie put on a benefit dance for a worthy cause.

Whitley accepts a date with the persistent Ron in the hopes of making Dwayne jealous. She leaves a series of answering machine messages in which she repeats the time and location of the date, believing that Dwayne will show up. Ron ignores Dwayne's warning and insists that Whitley really likes him. After they have a good time at a club, Whitley feels guilty and admits that she was trying to get to Dwayne. Ron accepts her apology and says that he is happy to help, as he cannot stand Kinu. Ron pleads for a kiss at the end of the evening, and Whitley pecks him on the cheek. When Dwayne comes out of his apartment, she pulls Ron into a long liplock. Freddie hopes to get into a class taught by Professor Randolph, a respected authority on African American history. Professor Randolph asks students to write an essay explaining why they would like to enroll, but Freddie impresses him with a performance art piece. Freddie's cousin Matthew, who is white, comes over from Avery College to take the c

Dwayne takes Whitley and Ron to his parents' house for Christmas. Whitley is desperate to impress Dwayne's mother. She sneaks out before dinner to buy an expensive present for Mrs. Wayne. After she misses the subway, a panhandler dressed as Santa Claus accosts her and steals the gift. Whitley stops the thief with some help from the police, but the gift is broken. Mrs. Wayne apologizes for giving Whitley a rough time and urges her not to try so hard. Ron's father punishes him for refusing to work at the dealership by cutting him out of the family's Hawaiian vacation. Ron seeks solace by stuffing his face with Mrs. Wayne's cooking until his father offers him a reprieve.

Dwayne's good friend Zelmer comes to visit and stuns him by announcing that his Army Reserve unit has been called to the Persian Gulf. Ron promises to show Zelmer a good time over the weekend before he has to ship out on Monday. Dwayne is confused by Zelmer's cavalier attitude, and expresses disappointment at the fact that his friend won't open up to him. Ron annoys the girls by barring them from his send-off party for Zelmer. Whitley, Jaleesa and Kim crash the party and perform a musical number. Freddie, who is opposed to U.S. involvement in the Gulf, cannot bring herself to share her objections with Zelmer. Whitley tries to console a shaken Dwayne; he and Zelmer dreamed of changing the world with their minds, not fighting in a war. Dwayne now worries that the same thing could happen to him. Zelmer confesses his fears to Col. Taylor, who tries to help him remain strong.

Whitley organizes an exhibit to display the artwork of Hillman students. Mr. Gaines shows her some sketches drawn by Novian Winters, a young man who pays for meals with art when he is short on cash. Impressed, she struggles to convince him to take part in the show. The gallery owner orders Whitley to remove Novian's painting because he considers it sacrilegious. Whitley fails to back Novian because she does not want to hurt the other artists by canceling the show. Jaleesa and Freddie accusing her of selling out Novian to further her own career. She moves the show to the Pit so that he can take part. Walter is outraged when his visiting niece gets too friendly with Ron.

Marion and Adele clash over preparations for Thanksgiving dinner and throw food all over the kitchen. Marion takes Malik to task for paying too much attention to Kim. However, he is not her fiancé, but rather an actor whom she hired to break up Dwayne and Whitley. Malik backs out of the deal and joins the rally for the Haitians. Adele and Marion are mistaken for protesters and hauled into jail. When they wonder why they haven't been bailed out, Freddie breaks the news that Dwayne and Whitley are broke. Adele and Marion seem to bond over their disdain for their children's marriage. After returning to the house, Adele admits to Dwayne that she is mostly upset because she didn't get to see his wedding. Whitley assures her mother that she is happy, and everyone makes up. Shazza tells Freddie that he is aware of her dalliances with Ron. She admits that she can't decide which man she wants, so they end the relationship.

Whitley takes a job substitute teaching for an unruly remedial class at a run-down junior high school. The students are completely out of control the first day, then suddenly behave themselves perfectly. Whitley discovers that they all purposely failed their tests. She considers giving up, but instead challenges the students to prove their intelligence. At the principal's suggestion, she uses her own background to cover the material left out of the outdated textbooks. Dorian finally asks Lena on a date. He stuns her by revealing that he does not believe in pre-marital sex. She decides that she is still interested in having a relationship with him.

Dwayne uses his radio persona "Dr. Cupid" to find a Valentine's Day date, and Denise uses Dr. Cupid to reconcile Lettie and an old love.

Whitley thrills her friends by announcing that she has finally decided that Dwayne is the right man for her. Although she answered his love letters during the summer, she chose not to send her replies because she wanted to leave him begging for more. When she goes to Dwayne's apartment to share her feelings, she discovers that he met someone during his summer in Japan. He introduces her to girlfriend Kinu, a beautiful Japanese American who attends nearby Avery College. In addition to her emotional turmoil, Whitley does not have a place to live because she lost her apartment by failing to pay the security deposit. Jaleesa reluctantly allows her to temporarily stay at her apartment (across the hall from Dwayne's). Whitley vows that she will not screw up if she gets another chance with Dwayne. Col. Taylor's son Terrence enrolls at Hillman. His overzealous behavior around women earns him the nickname ""Pee Wee Hormone.""

Ron tries to keep his father from discovering that he did not graduate. He dons a cap and gown and takes part in the ceremony. When his father decides to stay an extra day, Ron finally tells him the truth. Mr. Johnson believes that Ron has been treated unfairly and tries (unsuccessfully) to plead his son's case to the dean. Whitley's boss offers her a transfer to the company's main office in New York. Although Whitley doesn't want to leave Dwayne and her friends, he believes that she must take advantage of this career opportunity. They decide to try a long-distance relationship, but Whitley overhears the depressed Dwayne tell Ron that it might be better to end things before they drift apart. She steps away from the window and does not hear him vow to not give up on the relationship. Before boarding her flight, Whitley tells Dwayne that they should break up. Dwayne chases after her and asks her to marry him.

Rudy visits Hillman and becomes enchanted by Whitley, who tries to make her into the perfect little lady.