this girl is on fire

It was an early August morning, the sun just starting to rise, as Kelly moved around the loft, grabbing the last few things they needed and packing them into the suitcase by the door. Maya, who would normally balk at being awake this early, was happily eating waffles at the dining room table. She was still in her pajamas and her curls were still askew from sleep, but she was in a good mood and that was all Kelly could ask for, especially with the day they had ahead of them.

After doing one more check of the suitcase, Kelly grabbed his coffee off the counter and joined Maya at the table. She smiled a toothy smile at his as he sat beside her, her cheeks covered in syrup. "Daddy!"

"Hi baby," Kelly said with a smile. "Are you excited for our trip?"

The almost three-year-old nodded excitedly and Kelly winced as her curls nearly ended up covered in syrup from the waffle in her hand. "Gonna supwise mommy!"

Kelly chuckled. "That's right."

Stella had been down in Texas for a few days at the National Firefighters Convention. Girls on Fire had made its way into fire departments on the East Coast, thanks to all of Stella's hard work a few years ago, and now she was getting a chance to take the program nationwide with a booth at the biggest firefighting conference the US had to offer. Even more exciting, Stella was getting to present the program on stage, in front of fire fighters from nearly all 50 states.

Kelly was so proud of Stella; Girls on Fire was her brainchild and she had put in the hard work to make it what it was. From their daily phone calls and FaceTimes, he knew Stella was enjoying talking up the program and getting other departments interested. He also knew, courtesy of those same phone calls and FaceTimes, that Stella was also missing him and Maya.

This was the longest she'd ever been away from Maya since she'd been born and seeing her through a phone screen just didn't cut it. Plus, he knew firsthand that nothing could beat a hug from Maya.

That's why Kelly took time off and booked last minute plane tickets for him and Maya to go down to Texas for a few days. At first, he thought they'd just surprise Stella at the hotel when she returned after the conference wrapped for the day, but Kelly lucked out and was able to get passes to the conference for him and Maya both. Stella had no idea about their surprise for her; Kelly didn't even tell Maya about the trip until the night before, not wanting her to say anything to Stella on their nightly call.

When Maya heard they were going to go see Stella, she was excited and went to bed without her usual fuss. Her excitement lasted through to the morning, which made getting her up and moving easy. And now that she had finished her breakfast, the only thing Kelly had left to do was get her dressed and ready.

Kelly cleaned up from breakfast then picked Maya up and carried her over the sink, sitting her on the counter next to it so he could clean her sticky face and hands. With Maya all clean, Kelly carried her into her room and helped her change out of her pajamas and into the tiny Girls on Fire shirt Brett had gotten her and a pair of shorts. He grabbed a pair of sandals for her to put on later and headed into the bathroom, sitting Maya on the counter and facing her towards the mirror. Kelly stood behind her, hairbrush in hand, ready to tame her crazy curls.

"Alright kiddo, what are we thinking?"

"Bwaids! Like mommy has!" Maya said excitedly, looking at Kelly in the mirror.

Kelly smiled back at her but huffed a little. He'd learned how to braid over the past few years (the Squad guys had a field day with that information once they had found out), and while he was decent, his French braiding skills weren't anywhere close to Stella's. Whenever he was in charge of doing Maya's hair, he usually tried to go for more simple styles, but Maya loved Stella's braids and wanted her hair done to match whenever she could, so Kelly would suck it up and give his little girl some braids.

Twenty minutes later, Maya's braids were done (albeit messier than Stella would ever do) and the two Severides were headed out to the airport.

… … …

Five hours later, Kelly and Maya had arrived in Texas, dropped their luggage off at the hotel, and were walking hand in hand through the convention center. Traffic from the airport had been horrendous and by the time they reached the hotel and convention center Stella's presentation had already started. Thankfully, there were still a few stragglers joining the presentation, so Kelly and Maya were able to slip in unnoticed.

Seeing the room packed full of people made Kelly's heart swell with pride—for Stella, the Girls on Fire program, the hard work and dedication she'd put into it over the past years, everything. He loved watching Stella do her thing. Despite how nervous she had been to present at the conference, she was rocking it as usual.

Kelly was snapped out of his thoughts by a gentle but insistent tug on his hand. He looked down to see Maya looking up at him. "Daddy, where mommy at?"

He smiled and bent down, lifting Maya up and setting her on his shoulders so she could see her mom over the crowd of people.

The end of Stella's presentation coincided with a bathroom break for Maya and by the time they got back Stella was at the Girls on Fire booth, surrounded by interested parties wanting more information. They jumped in line, Kelly holding Maya on his hip, and waited as the line dwindled. The convention hall, where all the booths were located, was closing down for lunch so a majority of the crowd was gone.

When Kelly and Maya made it up to the Girls on Fire booth, Stella's back was to them as she reorganized the materials on the table.

"Girls on Fire?" Kelly asked. He saw Stella's body freeze upon hearing his voice. Her back was still to him, but he knew she recognized it. "Sounds like an amazing program. You should be proud."

Stella whirled around, surprise clear on her face. She even had the beginning of tears in her eyes.

"Surprise," Kelly continued with a smile.

"Hi mommy!" Maya chirped from Kelly's arms. She stuck her arms out towards Stella, who instantly grabbed her from Kelly.

"Hi baby girl! Oh, I missed you so much!" Stella exclaimed, hugging Maya tightly.

"Me miss you too!" Maya said after hugging Stella. "Me and daddy come supwise you!"

"I see that!" Stella said, looking at her daughter with a smile. She shifted her gaze from the toddler in her arms to her husband, who was watching their reunion with a wide smile on her face. "What are you doing here?"

Kelly shrugged, smile still in place. "This was the longest you've ever been away from Maya, and I knew how much you missed her. We missed you just as much, so I thought we'd fly down here and surprise you. Getting to see you rock your Girls on Fire presentation was just a bonus."

Stella's heart swelled and she smiled at her husband. She used her free hand to grip his shirt and pull him closer, giving him a loving kiss before wrapping him in a hug.

"Thank you," Stella whispered in his ear. "You have no idea how much I needed this."

Kelly hugged her closer, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I'm so proud of you. Maya and I both are, and we love you so much."

Stella sniffled and broke away from the hug, smiling at Kelly. There were still unshed tears in her eyes, but the love and happiness still shone through.

"Well I'm starving," Stella said, turning her attention to the toddler in her arms, noting the Girls on Fire shirt she wore. Stella poked her belly. "You ready to eat Maya?"

"I have nuggies?" Maya asked sweetly, making her parents laugh.

"I'm sure we can find some place that has chicken nuggets for you," Kelly answered with a chuckle.

Maya cheered and squirmed, wanting to be put down. Stella obliged but, while the crowd had died down, there were still quite a few people around. She and Kelly each grabbed one of Maya's hands and they headed out with her walking between them.

Maya walked quietly between her parents, taking in all the people and exhibits they passed. This gave her parents plenty of time to talk.

"How was the flight?" Stella asked.

"Not bad." Kelly answered, following the signs pointing them towards the nearby restaurants. "It was early but she did great."

Stella smiled. "And the Girls on Fire shirt and braids? Was that your idea or hers?"

Kelly chuckled. "The shirt was my idea, the braids were hers. She said she wanted braids like her mommy."

Stella practically melted. Her time at the conference so far had been great; Girls on Fire was getting a lot of attention from other departments across the US and the feedback she'd gotten from her presentation had been nothing but positive. She couldn't have asked for a better experience, or so she thought. Having her family there with her was everything she didn't know she needed.


A/N: Did I take creative liberties with the National Firefighters Conference and bring the Severides to Texas? Yes, yes I did. It's probably the closest I'll ever get to meeting them so let me have this one

in order to maintain a somewhat regular posting schedule, I'm only allowing myself to write a Maya fic AFTER I've finished a chapter of my other WIP, Forged by Fire. I LOVE writing Maya, so hopefully this little arrangement is beneficial.

got any prompts for Maya? let's chat on Tumblr!