"That was a great game, huh?" said Vicki to her friend Marcia. "I don't think I'll ever forget it!" Marcia replied. "The day Westdale played Fairview and won the League Championship!" Vicki laughed. "And it was all thanks to your brother." Greg Brady had not only played a good clean game - his prowess as a halfback had made the difference to the way it played out. Now Vicki had only one thing on her mind, and that was to hurry over to the lemonade stand before it shut. The crowd was thinning out now but there were a couple of Fairview cheerleaders sitting cross-legged on the grass a few feet from the stand and sipping lemonade through straws. As she went past them, Vicki felt conscious of her Westdale cheerleader outfit but the girls seemed friendly enough. "Hey, well done on the cheers", said one of them.
"You did pretty well too", Vicki answered her.
"We practice quite a lot", said the other cheerleader.
"Lemonade for you, miss?" asked the man behind the stand. "Yes please!" said Vicki. "You got here just in time for the last cupful", the man told her as he served it to her. "Wow, that's a relief, thanks!" she replied. The man quickly stowed all his things in a crate. "Hey sweetie", he asked her, "would you mind keeping an eye on the stand for me? I had to park way over there."
"Sure", said Vicki, and stood behind the stall. The Fairview cheerleaders were still sat on the ground with their lemonade. As Vicki sipped her lemonade, she could hear them talking. "That was quite something about Mary Jane, wasn't it?" said one, and they both giggled.
"Say, who was it fathered her baby?"
"Greg Brady. You know, the halfback in the game just now."
Greg Brady? And it was only five minutes ago that she'd been talking to Marcia. Vicki wanted to hear more but the Fairview girls had got up and were walking away. Vicki took another sip at her lemonade. Poor Mary Jane, whoever she was. Over in the spectator area, she could see the other Bradys talking excitedly. How likely was it that they knew? How likely was it that Greg even knew? "Thanks for that, miss." It was the lemonade man.
"My pleasure", mumbled Vicki. She started heading over to the changing rooms. Maybe she was chicken but she didn't think she could bring herself to say anything to the Bradys right now. Just then, she saw Greg himself. He had changed from his football uniform into his everyday clothes and was being carried on the shoulders of two of his team mates. Quite the local celebrity now – it was dreadful to think of the fall he could be heading for. Marcia and the rest of his family hurried over to greet him.
"Hey, put him down", she heard Mrs. Carol Brady yelling happily, "he's the only halfback we've got in the family!" The two boys crouched down and Greg got to his feet. "We're so proud of you", said Carol, giving him a hug. "Hey Brady", said one of his buddies, punching his shoulder. "Who's the Daddy now?"
"I guess I am", laughed Greg. He hasn't a clue, thought Vicki. Oh, I've just got to get my courage up and say something to one of the family.