Wallace walks into his house after having just met Nathan for the first time. Alicia offers him food, but he's more interested in finding out about Nathan. Wallace is upset about the fact the man he thought was his father, who's dead, really wasn't. Alicia explains that while Nathan was an undercover narcotics detective, he got so deep into the job, including using and stealing drugs, she became afraid of being around him. She insists Hank Fennel (the man they buried) is really Wallace's father, but when she goes to get Wallace's birth certificate, she finds it's missing, and realizes Keith took it.
Later, at Neptune High, in homeroom, Mr. Wu announces the homecoming dance, which will be at the end of the week, and opens the field for nominations for homecoming king and queen. Veronica, totally misreading Wallace's mood, nominates him for homecoming king, which Wallace can't believe. In another homeroom class, run by Mrs. Murphy, Corny nominates Veronica for homecoming queen. Logan and Jackie both snark on this choice, but Mandy gushes that Veronica would be a great choice.
A little later, Wallace is sitting alone at lunch when Jackie and her friend Cora (Dana Davis) walk by, talking about the upcoming dance. Despite snarking about it, Jackie is excited about the dance, but less excited about the fact Wallace excuses himself to go talk to Veronica. He tells Veronica about Nathan, and she's sympathetic, but before they can go any further, Jackie interrupts, and after attempting to joke about them planning a surprise party for her, storms off. Wallace recognizes he needs to deal with Jackie, and takes off as well.
At Mars Investigations, Veronica notes sourly that Lamb had Keith's campaign signs dumped in the trash, but Keith is too giddy to care; the polling puts him ahead, and he thinks the election is in the bag.
At a mall, Jackie is seeing a psychic named Madame Sophie (Christine Estabrook), who gives Jackie a message from her grandmother. Later, when Jackie tries to pay her bill by credit card, the card is declined.
Later, at Neptune High, in the girl's bathroom, Jackie approaches Veronica and tells her about her credit card declining, and that Wallace suggested asking her for help. Jackie says she's afraid Cora, her best friend, might have borrowed the card and used it, so she wants Veronica to prove otherwise. Veronica says she'll look into it, and they look at Jackie's bill so Veronica can see if Cora has anything that was purchased on the credit card.
Meanwhile, at Mars Investigations, Alicia shows up and demands Keith give her back the birth certificate. Keith wants to know why she never mentioned Nathan was a cop, and Alicia says she was trying to protect Wallace. When Keith tries to suggest that might not have been best for Wallace, Alicia tells him he's not one to give parenting advice, and storms out.
That night, at Sac-And-Pac, Nathan visits Wallace at work. Nathan admits to being strung out back in the day, and doesn't blame Alicia for running out, but he disputes Alicia's tale that Nathan never tried to find Wallace. He shows Wallace a stack of letters he mailed to Alicia's mother that she promised to pass on, but were returned. Wallace brings up the fact Alicia gave Nathan an ultimatum - be a cop or be a father - but Nathan responds that she never gave him that choice, because he would have unhesitatingly chose being a father.
The next day, at Neptune High, they announce the nominees for Homecoming King and Queen. Wallace is nominated, to his and Veronica's delight. Veronica is not, to Mandy's disappointed, but Logan and Jackie seem pleased.
A little later, Veronica sees Cora - wearing an expensive calfskin jacket - and "accidentally" runs into her. She "recognizes" Cora as her eighth grade badminton partner, and admires the jacket. Cora tells her about a mall she goes to, and when she mentions picking up her Homecoming dress, Veronica volunteers to drive her, though when Cora leaves, Veronica sardonically notes Duncan hasn't asked her to Homecoming yet.
A little later, in the Neptune High parking lot, Duncan asks Logan is he wants to come over to the Neptune Grand and play video games with him. Logan says yes, and looks relieved that they're friends again. Behind them, Jackie and Veronica are walking past the bus. Jackie thinks Cora's the thief, but Veronica's not quite sure yet, and promises to let her know for sure the next day.
Later, at the town hall, Keith and Lamb are having a sponsored debate. Lamb, calling himself "the Exterminator", brings up the fact violent crime has dropped eleven percent since he's been in office, and Keith admits while he loves Neptune, even after he was initially ostracized for his initial views on Lily's murder, he's troubled by the polarization between the haves and have-nots. The debate moderator brings up the bus crash, and Lamb drops a bombshell; Ed Doyle, the driver, was arrested on a DUI by Keith when he was a deputy, but never wrote it up, and had Doyle been charged with the crime, he never would have been hired. Keith has no answer to that, and Veronica, who's been taking pictures of the debate, gives Lamb a Death Glare.
At Cora's house, Veronica thanks Cora for letting her borrow clothes after she spilled something. Veronica goes snooping around for stolen merchandise, but instead finds Cora works as the mascot for a fast-food restaurant called Oh Boyo Pollo Chicken, and Cora asks her not to tell anyone. A little later, they come back from the mall, and Veronica thanks Cora again. Once Cora leaves, Veronica calls Oh Boyo Pollo Chicken, pretending to be a vocational counselor at Neptune High, and verifies Cora was working during the times the merchandise was charged to Jackie's credit card. Veronica calls Jackie and tells her Cora wasn't the thief.
That night, Veronica is with Duncan at the Neptune Grand. As he gets room service, Duncan suggests having an after-party for the Homecoming dance, and realizes he hasn't asked Veronica to the dance yet. He does, and Veronica accepts. She also asks Duncan for some Kane Software stationary.
The next morning, at the Mars apartment, Veronica is reading the paper about the sheriff's race becoming more of a contest thanks to Lamb's bombshell announcement at the debate. Keith is more interested in the large beetle Veronica has inside a glass cube; Veronica tells him it's for a biology project.
At the Fennel house, Alicia comes into the kitchen, and Wallace shows the letters from Nathan that Alicia had marked "return to sender". Alicia brings up the fact she told Wallace to stay away from Nathan, but Wallace, visibly hurt, says Alicia lied to him. He walks out.
Later, in the hallway of Neptune High, Wallace tells Veronica about what happened, but Veronica thinks Alicia is right. She also points out since Nathan is a cop, it would have been easy for him to find Wallace if he really wanted to. Veronica leaves, and Wallace looks unconvinced.
At the sheriff's department, Lamb opens up a small package from "Jake Kane", which contains a note wishing him luck in the upcoming election, and the "bug" Veronica had been working on. Lamb tells Sachs about this; Sachs, however, thinks Lamb will be more interested in the "two goons" they've just picked up at Cliffside, and Lamb goes to investigate.
Veronica goes to the mall to find "Consolidated Industries", the place where Jackie's card was first used. She finds Madame Sophie's place, and guesses she's the one who might have committed the identity theft.
Later, at the Mars Apartment, Veronica tells Jackie about Madame Sophie, and Jackie confesses she visits her to communicate with her dead grandmother. She calls it her "secret shame", which leads Veronica to admit when she was a freshman, she ordered "Mamma-Max" chest cream from an infomercial. Jackie thinks of a way to get even; go on Madame Sophie's show...
...and at the Cook place, Jackie shows Veronica Madame Sophie's public access show, where she "helps" people communicate with their dead loved ones. The clip shown is of Sophie comforting Michelle (Samantha Klein), whose friend Rhonda died on the bus crash. Veronica muses how she's going to take down Madame Sophie. Just then, Terrence comes into Jackie's bedroom. Veronica and Terrence both remember how they met, and Terrence mentions the mayor asked him to emcee the sheriff department's charity ball. He says goodbye to Veronica and leaves.
That night, back at the Mars apartment, Veronica muses at how she's going to go on Madame Sophie's show to expose her, since Jackie would easily be recognized. Veronica decides to check in with the bug she planted on Lamb. After going through unimportant meetings, Veronica comes across the meeting with Lamb that Terrence alluded to...
...and in a flashback, we see the meeting. Lamb tells Terrence about the sheriff department's annual fundraiser. Terrence, bemused, tells Lamb he'll gladly buy two tickets, but Lamb has in mind a thousand tickets, plus emcee the bachelor auction. Terrence tells Lamb he's asking for a lot of money, which is when Lamb reveals he knows Terrence not only owes three million dollars in gambling debts, but he also has someone in a holding cell who knows Terrence did favors for people who bet on baseball. Terrence is shocked, especially when Lamb says he wants to make sure Terrence makes it into the Hall of Fame. Back at the Mars apartment, Veronica is disappointed to hear this.
The next day, at lunch, Veronica approaches Michelle and mentions seeing her on Madame Sophie's show. She also says she's going on the show, and Michelle mentions how she told "a crazy lady" backstage about Rhonda. She also says she couldn't eat or sleep after the bus crash because she thought Rhonda blamed her for not picking up when she called. Turns out Michelle still has the voicemail, and she plays it for Veronica. On it, Rhonda is cheerfully wondering why Michelle didn't pick up or go on the field trip, and is about to make plans for next weekend when there's an explosion, everyone starts screaming, there's a second explosion, and then everything goes blank. Veronica is completely shocked, but she recovers enough to forward the message to her own phone.
That night, at the Neptune Grand, Duncan and Logan settle down to play golf on Playstation.
At the studio where Madame Sophie tapes her show, we see her comforting a teenage girl as the audience applauds. Veronica muses at how she's looking for her "Uncle Roger". She takes the stage, and Madame Sophie at first says she's hearing a voice from someone like "Uncle Roger", but then says she's hearing another voice, named "Lily", who wants Veronica to stay away from her boyfriend. Veronica is shocked, and so are Wallace, who's watching on TV with Jackie at her place, and Duncan and Logan, who have stopped playing and who are also watching. Madame Sophie goes on to say that "Lily" also wants Veronica to be happy with her own body, and not to use "Mamma-Max". Veronica gives a rueful grin as she realizes Jackie is behind it all, while Duncan, Logan and Wallace continue to watch in shock.
Back at the Mars apartment, Veronica uploads Lamb and Terrence's conversation to a CD. Duncan calls, and Veronica says she's fine, thanking him for his concern. She asks who's going to DJ the Homecoming dance, and when she finds out it's Corny, tells Duncan she has a special request. She hangs up and writes "Homecoming Request" on the CD. Wallace knocks on the door, and Veronica angrily tells him how Jackie set her up. Wallace doesn't believe it until Veronica brings up "Mamma-Max", and tells Wallace to pick a side. Wallace, however, asks Veronica to let it go, and points out Jackie's right about one thing; "it's your world, I just live in it." Veronica, stunned, listens as Wallace goes on to remind her how his whole life was just revealed to be a lie, and he claims Veronica hasn't been sympathetic. He storms out, and Veronica continues to look stunned.
The next day, Wallace calls Jackie at her place. He asks if she set Veronica up; she admits she wanted to get even with Veronica for telling Wallace about Jackie being with Dave, and for coming between the two of them. Wallace points out Jackie has no idea what Veronica has gone through. Jackie swears she didn't tell Madame Sophie about Lily, and begs Wallace to let her make it up to him at the dance. Wallace bitterly tells her he's not going with her, and is only going because he's been nominated for Homecoming King. When he hangs up, Jackie looks at a bottle of pills.
That night, at the Mars Apartment, Keith tells Veronica how beautiful she looks for the dance. Veronica, however, has more important things for Keith to worry about; she plays him Michelle's voicemail. Keith is shocked to hear it as well, but even though he agrees with Veronica that the voicemail proves the bus was sabotaged - meaning Ed Doyle had nothing to do with it - and the kids were murdered, Keith doesn't want to use the recording for political means to try and win the election, despite Veronica's protests that the investigation will only be done right if Keith wins. Duncan arrives, and Keith reminds him to take the "gentleman" part of gentleman caller seriously. Just as Duncan and Veronica are about to leave, Keith asks her if she wants the "Homecoming Request" CD. Veronica thinks for a second, and decides to swallow her pride for Wallace's sake by leaving the CD behind.
At the dance, the Faders are playing "No Sleep Tonight" (from the soundtrack), and Veronica and Duncan (along with several other kids) enthusiastically dance to it. Later, they've switched to a slow song, and Veronica and Duncan are holding each other close, until Veronica sees Jackie holding Logan, and from the looks of it, kissing him. Furious, Veronica breaks off from Duncan, and pulls Jackie and Logan apart. Veronica starts yelling at Jackie for breaking Wallace's heart, and Jackie, who looks somewhat dazed, accuses Veronica of wanting every guy for herself. Veronica sees Wallace, who looks devastated at both Jackie dancing with Logan and for Veronica reacting to it, and he leaves. Veronica starts to follow, but Wallace disappears before she can catch up to him, and Duncan tells her everything will be okay.
Meanwhile, at the sheriff's department, Keith tells Lamb about the voicemail, and gives him Veronica's recording of it. Lamb, of course, merely thinks Ed Doyle blew his brains out, and that Keith is merely doing this to try and win the election. Keith, upset, points out he could have easily just gone to the press, and kind of wish he had. Just then, he notices Veronica's "beetle", and he distracts Lamb long enough to swipe it.
Later that night, back at the Mars apartment, Keith is sleeping when the phone rings. It's Alicia; Keith is about to apologize to her when she interrupts him...
...and the next morning, Veronica is making breakfast when Keith comes in. Veronica, concerned, asks where was, and Keith tells her Wallace has disappeared. Veronica looks devastated.
Wallace is inside Nathan's car as they drive away from Neptune. Veronica calls Wallace, but he ignores the call; she leaves a voicemail apologizing and pleading for him to call back. As Nathan drives, Wallace goes to sleep.
This episode contains examples of:
- Break the Cutie: Wallace gets it from all sides this episode.
- Break the Haughty: As far as Jackie's concerned, this is what she was doing to Veronica and insists she only wanted to "take her down a peg" after becoming jealous of Wallace's friendship with her and hearing what a "legendary badass" Veronica is. But, ironically enough, the same thing happens to her when her prank backfires by straining her relationship with Wallace (for humiliating his best friend) and the psychic happens to bring up Veronica's dead best friend (making it a more mean-spirited prank than Jackie intended).
- Call-Back: Ed Doyle, the return of Mandy, and Veronica meeting Terrence.
- Disappeared Dad: Subverted; Nathan tried to find Wallace, but wasn't able to, and Alicia didn't want him around.
- Foreshadowing: That voicemail. Plus, Terrence's gambling problem.
- Incredibly Obvious Bug: Veronica's "beetle". Of course, Lamb doesn't notice, but Keith does.
- It's All About Me: Wallace accuses Veronica of only focusing on her own problems and life problems while ignoring the fact his own life is falling apart.
- Meaningful Echo: Veronica tells Wallace about his sudden parent situation, "The one who sticks with you is the one who cares," which is similar to her telling Keith, "The hero is the one that stays."
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Alicia knows something's wrong when Big Eater Wallace says he isn't hungry.
- Prank Gone Too Far: As far as Wallace is concerned, this is what Jackie does after tipping off a psychic about Lilly to embarrass Veronica (who is there to figure out who scammed Jackie) on a live cable show. Jackie insists she never told the psychic about Lilly and that the prank was supposed to be funny, not as mean-spirited as it turned out to be. Wallace doesn't care, given that she still ended up hurting his best friend.
- Put on a Bus: Obviously, Wallace, but also Alicia, Jackie, and Nathan. Justified for the last three in that they're all dependent on Wallace being there.
- Shout-Out: Veronica compares Nathan to Donnie Brasco.
- Veronica jokingly compares Duncan to Howard Hughes, specifically his being an eccentric shut-in.
- When Duncan calls Veronica after Madame Sophie's show, she sardonically answers the phone as "Chesty LaRue."
- Also, when Veronica says she has something important to tell Keith, he cracks, "I already discovered Live at Budokan."
- Waxing Lyrical: When he sees Nathan at the Sac-And-Pac, Wallace sings part of "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" by the Temptations to him.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Alicia does this to Keith when she finds out he took Wallace's birth certificate.
- Wallace in turn does this to Alicia when he finds out she lied to him about Nathan.
