The Real World - Season 9

Seven roommates with different backgrounds and lifestyles arrive in New Orleans to live and work together.

Julie's sheltered world opens up as she sleeps in the same room with a boy for the first time, and she soon develops a romantic interest in Matt. Meanwhile, Danny awaits a visit from boyfriend Paul, but worries that as an active member of the military, Paul is putting himself in harms way by being in front of the camera. David hits the club scene and brings a woman back to the Belfort, which leads to Julie question whether he uses women.

David and Melissa form a flirtatious friendship based on similarities in race and personality. Melissa reveals to her roommates feelings of sadness and regret over the fact that her parents were not involved in her life while growing up. Julie admits to Danny that although his sexual preference doesn't fit in with her moral standards, she still loves and accepts him as a friend. After having a bad day, Melissa goes out with the roommates and gets drunk, causing David to go home early. Meanwhile, Melissa performs a comical strip tease at a local strip club while Danny, Kelley, and Jamie laugh hysterically. David explains to Melissa that he will not be there for her if she chooses alcohol as an escape. She replies, ""Fine, then don't talk to me for the next five months."" After getting the silent treatment from David, Melissa tearfully begs him for forgiveness, causing him to give in and make up with her.

The cast is excited about their new job, which will involve producing a public access show for New Orleans Access Television. Melissa goes on a date with a new boy known as ""Frat Matt"" and is amazed to find out what it is like to be treated like a lady. On their first day on the job, the cast gets a scolding from their boss, Elton, for arriving late. Melissa goes on a second date with ""Frat Matt"" and feels a bit out of place with the upscale crowd he hangs out with. The cast begins training on their show, The Real Seven at 7, which will be produced by Kelley and directed by Danny. After ""Frat Matt"" makes a move on Melissa, she pushes him away because she believes that he wouldn't be interested in her if they had met in any other situation. The cast realizes that their job, along with their new boss Elton, will not be easy to deal with.

As Kelley and Melissa become friends, they realize that they have a common interest--Jamie. Jamie admits that although he is attracted to both Kelley and Melissa, he doesn't feel that a physical element is needed in his relationships with his roommates at this point in time. Kelley's focus moves away from Jamie when she meets a very attractive medical student named Peter while out on the town with her roommates. Jamie and Melissa start spending a lot of time together just as friends, which is a new experience for Jamie. Kelley invites Peter to attend a drag queen performance that she, along with Melissa and Julie, will be participating in during a Chinese New Year celebration. Things heat up as Melissa and Jamie take a friendly bubble bath together.

Melissa finds out that Ryan, the guy she dated before coming to New Orleans, is going to pay her a visit for her birthday. Kelley and David butt heads when she confronts him over his lack of participation in the effort to put together their first TV show. Melissa tells Ryan that she's worried about his expectations for his upcoming visit to New Orleans, as well as for their relationship in the future. Melissa and David break out in a heated yelling match during a group meeting at the TV station. Melissa enjoys a wild birthday celebration that includes a strip tease from David, while Ryan quietly observes, clearly not pleased with her behavior. Melissa breaks into tears as she admits to Ryan that she was trying to behave badly so he wouldn't like her anymore.

While working at a French Quarter bar Danny meets new friends and is tempted to cheat on Paul. Kelley wants to be Peter's Valentine, but he already has a girlfriend. Having been away from Paul for some time, Danny is feeling the temptation from other men in New Orleans and in particular, a guy named Wes. Danny struggles with his love for Paul and his attraction to other men, wondering if he can remain faithful. Paul decides to surprise Danny on Valentine's Day by showing up in New Orleans. After the visit, Danny's feelings for Paul are reaffirmed and he decides he doesn't want to lose Paul. Meanwhile, Kelley's relationship with Paul begins to strengthen. Peter breaks off the relationship with his girlfriend in order to pursue a new relationship with Kelley. He takes her out for a romantic dinner and afterwards, she spends the night at his place. Julie continues to flirt with Matt, who, up to this point, seems oblivious to her advances. They both recognize, however, that they are having

The cast members have 48 hours to finish gathering material for their first live TV show. Kelley confronts David yet again about his unwillingness to follow her instructions as show producer. Kelley expresses to Elton her frustration over the progress of the show and the difficulties of managing the staff. Jamie and Julie agree that the entire project is being micro-managed and is being taken too seriously. The cast ends up doing a great job on their first live TV show and receives well-earned praise from Elton. But there's no time to celebrate--the cast must begin working immediately on next week's show and must choose a new producer for each week.

Four of Jamie's best friends come to New Orleans for a visit. Melissa and David try to explain to Julie the differences in racial terminology. Julie gets emotional as she explains to Melissa how she feels cheated as a result of her sheltered upbringing. During a boating trip with Julie, Jamie, and Jamie's friends, Melissa gets upset when the tour guide uses a racial term to describe a bird. Julie and Melissa argue over the issue of ignorance towards minorities. Melissa explains to Jamie why it hurt her when he didn't understand how upset she was by the boating incident.

Matt explains to Kelley that he is very picky about girls and will hold out until he finds the ideal girlfriend. Melissa's time in the house causes her to do a lot of thinking about issues from her past, as well as consider the possibility of leaving the house. Matt invites a girl named Kelley over to the house for a tour. Melissa and Julie get into a fight when Julie accuses Melissa of not respecting her Mormon beliefs. Matt decides to spend time hanging out with Kelley as a friend to get to know her before asking her out on a date. Melissa makes an appointment with a therapist to get help with the overwhelming issues that she is trying to deal with.

It's Mardi Gras time in New Orleans, and the Real Worlders get a surprise invitation to have dinner at Anne Rice's house. Danny realizes that he must try to make an extra effort to stay faithful to Paul during this time of partying. The roommates are invited to ride on a float during the parade, while David chooses to stay at the house with friends. During a night of heavy drinking and partying, Danny screws up by messing around with a guy he just met. Julie enjoys her Mardi Gras experience, which she describes as ""a celebration of sin."" Danny feels extremely lucky when Paul tells him that he doesn't care that he messed up, because he knows where his heart is and trusts him completely.

The roommates are ecstatic when they find out that they will be spending their vacation in South Africa. It is becoming apparent that there is a wall growing between David and the rest of the roommates. Melissa is frustrated that David won't put aside their differences to share the experience of being in Africa together. The group is taken on an outing that requires them to descend down a 100-meter cliff while connected to a rope. Melissa is particularly affected by this trip as she gains a new appreciation for nature and its effect on her spirituality. Jamie, Julie and Melissa agree that they should approach David as a group and try to help him break down his walls in order for him to get the most out of his experience in New Orleans.

Matt tells David that he is there for him as a support figure, while he tries to find his place in the household. The roommates arrive in scenic Victoria Falls, where David contemplates facing his fear of bungee jumping. Jamie, Julie, Matt and David share the intense state of euphoria that comes from bungee jumping off a 365-foot cliff. David slowly begins to open up to Kelley and the rest of the roommates by developing different connections with each of them. The roommates are particularly affected by their final outing into the African townships, where they caught a glimpse of families and children living in poverty. After their return from South Africa, Melissa confronts David about his positive attitude change towards the other roommates.

Danny's parents and siblings arrive in New Orleans to visit Danny and to meet his boyfriend Paul for the first time. Jamie is producing the next TV show, which will focus on African music and its influence on society and other genres of music. Although Danny's father knows about his son's sexual preference, he doesn't figure out that Paul is Danny's boyfriend. Kelley and Danny are annoyed that Jamie is only motivated about the show when he is the producer. Danny confronts Matt about his Catholic belief that homosexuality is wrong.

Danny and Kelley encourage Julie to talk a cute waiter named Baxter. Jamie expresses his frustration to Melissa over the obvious distaste Kelley has for him. On the evening of her date with Baxter, Julie meets another boy named Matt at Open Mike Night at the local coffeehouse. Jamie and Kelley sit down to talk about their strained relationship, and end up accusing one another of acting immaturely. Later, Kelley approaches Jamie in an attempt to mend their communication breakdown. After realizing that her new friend Matt is gay, Julie focuses on Baxter, but is turned off after a party because of the crowd he hangs with.

Julie is apprehensive about her family's upcoming visit because of the strained relationship between her and her father. Matt goes on an official ""Mullet Hunt"" as a special feature for their next show. Danny is frustrated with the attitudes of Julie's brother and his friends towards the gay community. Julie's father questions her on her experience in New Orleans and her plans for the future. The show Julie produces ends up being a big hit. Julie knows she is in trouble when she is late meeting her parents at church because she stayed out all night at a rave.

Kelley faces the difficult decision of whether or not to stay in New Orleans with Peter in order to continue developing their relationship. Julie finally breaks down and expresses to her father her built up frustrations about their relationship and his parenting methods. After an intense blowout with her father, Julie cries in frustration over the fact that they had to have this discussion during her experience in New Orleans. Peter gets upset with Kelley because she's mean to him at times. Kelley informs Peter that she has decided to stay with him in New Orleans. After making up with her father, Julie talks to her mother about her hopes for a better relationship with him in the future.

Jamie decides that he needs to take a break from constant partying in order to focus on his spirituality. There is a definite spark between Julie and Jamie as they discuss issues such as Jamie's kissing abilities. A mud-wrestling match between Julie and Jamie adds to the sexual tension between them. Later that evening, Julie and Jamie find themselves in a position where they end up kissing. Melissa takes up painting, which has an extremely positive effect on her mental well-being. Jamie realizes that he is drawn towards Julie because of the new level of spirituality he's exposed to from hanging out with her.

As the upcoming show producer, David plans to have a female fashion show, but doesn't include the roommates in any of the planning or details. Matt develops a liking for a girl named Brandi, and invites her to visit his Web page and sign his guest book. After finding her signature in his guest book, Matt gets Brandi's phone number from his friend Lionel and calls her, only to find out that she has a boyfriend and did not sign his guest book. Julie admits to Matt that she was the one who pretended to be Brandi and signed his guestbook. Kelley and Matt do a great job of saving the show as hosts/commentators on David's ""Stripper Fashion Show"" episode. David continues to separate himself from his roommates after he doesn't receive any positive feedback from them after his show.

When Julie brings her new friend Jacob by the house to meet the roommates, Matt makes a rude comment towards him, which annoys Julie. Despite Julie's protest, David makes plans to host a hot tub party to which he will only invite female strippers. Julie decides to write Matt a long letter explaining why she is upset with him and why she feels that their friendship is strained.After Matt expresses a genuine interest in going with David to an important recording studio session to be a supportive friend, David ends up leaving the house without him. Completely fed up with David's rudeness, the roommates decide to call a house meeting to discuss their issues with him.

Jamie and the others continue to discuss David's attitude problem. Melissa explodes on David and storms out of the room. Eventually David breaks down and tells the housemates that he is doing it all for his Mother, since she isn't in such good of health right now. In David's attempt at making relationships better with some of the housemates, he takes Julie to his recording studio, where she actually tries to rap with him. He also later makes an appearance at Melissa's art opening. At a last attempt to connect with Melissa, he has a heart to hear with on the front steps of the Belfort. He tells her how proud of her he is and that he knows that she's going to go places. They hug and make amends. Julie instigates a game of Spin the Bottle, and when the bottle that Matt spins lands on her, he won't give her the kiss that she's entitled to. He says that Julie cheated. But everyone else just knows that he's scared. The housemates prepare Julie and Kelley's room for a slumber party by pushing

Before Matt leaves New Orleans for good, Julie requests a kiss. Matt actually agrees and he pecks her on the lips before speeding away in his car. While Julie's struggle with Matt is going on, so is her struggle with her religion and her beliefs. She knows that she has learned a lot and has grown as a person. Her friend from the coffee shop, also named Matt, stops by with an article from Newsweek that is about a Mormon boy who killed himself because he was gay. After reading it and getting sick to her stomach, she realizes that this article just reaffirms her disagreement with some of her religious beliefs. Jamie narrates to his mother what everyone is going to be doing after they leave New Orleans; Kelley is staying in New Orleans with Peter, Danny is going home to his boyfriend, Melissa is moving to Los Angeles, David is going back home to his mother, Julie has another year at BYU and Matt also has another year at Georgia Tech. During the final scenes, each cast member reflects on wh