First-year student Ben Tickle is put in second-year classes because of his talent, but gets off on the wrong foot with the students, namely Sammy and Christian, for being judgemental (saying things are "gay") and a little self-absorbed, telling people to call him "Benster"; he initially throws a party for himself on Observatory Hill, but no one attends. Kat helps a group of girls for a high school assignment by making an expressionist music and movement routine, enlisting the help of her dance friends. Sammy decides that he has to work out his feelings, but tells Christian all is good between them. Grace and Abigail both make attempts to become better friends, initially struggling, but bond through Grace's idea to have fun by tricking people into giving them things for free (Abigail pretends to faint from low blood sugar while Grace calls for help and food; Abigail pretends to be Vanessa Hudgens to a new employee at a dress shop to get free clothes; and both pretend to be lost Swedish girls to a police officer to get a free ride back to the academy). The episode ends with Kat having made new friends, Sammy giving Ben a talking to about his personality and how his words could offend people, and Ben receiving a proper party with all the students attending.

Saskia begins teaching repertoire class at the academy, and Tara and Abigail compete to impress her. Saskia asks the class to work on their solo pieces, so everyone, especially Abigail (with Grace's help) begins looking to find a good routine to do; Tara has already chosen The Red Shoes, Saskia's solo when she represented Australia at the Prix de Fonteyn. Saskia then criticizes Tara's performance during class, telling her it was "a mess" and later saying she doesn't have the experience, leaving Tara disheartened. Ethan convinces Abigail to dance for a piece he is composing, but still faces his father's harsh judgements, who tells him he isn't ready. Miss Raine discovers Sammy's job at the restaurant, and the two discuss his supporting himself. Sammy says he was hoping to get a scholarship the following semester, to which Miss Raine replies he will need a tutor.

Ethan changes his piece for Showcase after criticism from his father, adding extra dancers (including Grace), angering Abigail. Christian's street-smart friend Kaylah arrives at the academy, looking for help from Christian (who she calls "Cheds") for her Showcase routine, alienating Tara, who realizes that she is in love with Christian and had been wanting to tell him so. Kat, who has also been told by her parents that her father wants to travel to Berlin to choreograph The Firebird with her mother as the principal dancer, alters Sammy and Ben's "steampunk" tap-dancing entry into a more modern three-person dance piece with herself as a burlesque ballerina being fought for by the two guys, and is offered an opportunity by a talent agent. Kaylah is overcome by last-minute nerves and Tara helps talk her into taking the stage, for which Christian is thankful and unknowingly alleviates her earlier uneasiness by telling her he loves her first. Abigail then closes the Showcase with Ethan's originally-intended solo performance for her to a new piece of music, "The Last Day on Earth".