1976 (#17) - Vision problems, Brad’s blindness and the pregnancy of Leslie

While Leslie is happy for her sister Lorie and her recent marriage to Lance, a new chapter in her troubled married life with Brad was about to open. It all begins when Brad begins to suffer from recurring headaches, which also affect his sight and perception. Without informing his wife of the problem, Brad travels to Cleveland to see Mark, who diagnoses a swelling of the optic nerve and advises him to have more thorough examinations at the hospital in Chicago. After extensive tests, a concerned Brad is informed by Dr. Sylvia Chase that he suffers from chronic neuritis and that this would most likely lead him to be blind. Brad then decides to do further tests in other specialized centers, but the diagnosis that the doctors from time to time establish is always the same: Brad would have completely lost his sight. Shocked, disappointed and worried by the news, Brad decides to hide all the truth from his wife and to do everything in his power to prevent Leslie from suffering and give up his career. Brad, in fact, loves his wife but cannot bear the idea of burdening her with the news that he would go blind, which would only interfere with his wife's career and prevent her from being happy. So Brad starts telling lies and lying to his wife, explaining his absences at concerts or family reunions with always invented and always different excuses; and the more he lies, the more Brad finds himself being caught in his deceitful web, until it was possible to unravel. Leslie, meanwhile, begins to realize that something is wrong and is increasingly disappointed and distant from her husband; Brad, on the other hand, at this point begins to think it's better that Leslie thinks he doesn't love her rather than reveal the truth to her. Leslie, meanwhile, is surprised to discover that she is pregnant with Brad; overjoyed by the news, she is sad to see her marriage is slowly falling apart and cannot understand why Brad is neglecting her more and more. Just as Brad is about to ask the woman for a divorce, she confesses to him about her pregnancy. Brad, completely shocked and overwhelmed, finds himself in front of a Leslie with tears in her eyes asking why her husband was moving away from her. Then Brad finally admits the whole truth to a moved Leslie, who only now realizes how much her husband loves her. In the end, they say they're excited about the news and promise to fight their future battles together by making a pact that Brad's illness would in no way affect his wife's career.