sleep in peace tonight

It was well after midnight when Kelly climbed back into bed. As he settled under the sheets, a drowsy Stella snuggled into his side. "Another nightmare?"

"Yeah," Kelly breathed, wrapping his arms around his wife. "I got her back to sleep but I wish there was more we could do for her."

"Hey, you heard Dr. Pickler. She said we're doing everything right; it's just going to take some time."

It had been six months since that fateful day when Kelly had been shot and Maya had been kidnapped. A day that had started as the perfect day with Kelly and Maya spending some daddy/daughter time together had turned into a nightmare in just a few seconds.

Everything ended as well as they could've hoped for; Maya was found less than two hours after she was taken, Kelly made it through surgery and their little family was reunited.

Kelly recovered physically and returned to work after a few months of physical therapy but mentally, he was struggling. He blamed himself for Maya being taken and had a lot of guilt over not being able to protect her.

Stella, while physically fine, was mentally and emotionally spent for a while. That day was the worst day of her life, and it was going to take a while to process everything.

Maya was fairing much better than both of her parents. The first few days following the shooting and her kidnapping she struggled with severe separation anxiety, understandably not wanting to be away from either of her parents. After a week or two, however, she was back to her normal, happy self. During the day, that is. Nighttime brought frequent nightmares, especially on the nights when her parents were on shift.

The entire Kidd-Severide family, at the urging of Dr. Charles, had been attending regular therapy sessions since Kelly had been released from the hospital. It was helping tremendously, but they all still struggled from time to time. Kelly and Stella's focus though was Maya.

After four sessions, Maya's therapist Dr. Pickler sat them down and shared that Maya's nightmares focused on Kelly being shot, and different outcomes her mind conjured up.

Desperate to help her, they begged for advice on what they could do, and Dr. Pickler told them to continue doing what they were doing—calming her fears, showing her that they were OK, letting her know everyone is safe, etc. Dr. Pickler confirmed Maya would most likely outgrow the nightmares as she got older, and their schedules and daily lives returned to normal. Everything was just going to take time.

"I know, that doesn't make it any easier though." Kelly sighed. "Especially when it's my fault."

"Hey," Stella scolded, propping herself up on one of her arms. She glared at her husband in the lowlight of their bedroom. "It is NOT your fault, OK? You didn't choose to get shot while trying to keep our daughter from being kidnapped. That's not on you, none of this is."

Kelly looked at her, staring into her eyes for a few moments before nodding.

Stella sighed and moved a hand to his cheek. She knew there was a deep, rational part of Kelly's brain that believed what she was saying, but it was being overpowered by his sense of guilt. He'd gotten better over the past months, his guilt about Maya had lessened along with his fear of something else happening to her, but every time Maya had a nightmare his guilt was back and worse than ever.

"She doesn't blame you, ya know," Stella stated, very matter of fact. "That little girl loves you SO much! Her nightmares aren't centered around her being kidnapped—they stem from fear of losing you. She just wants to know you're safe. That's why you're the one that can always calm her down."

Stella smiled softly. "She's a bigger daddy's girl than she was before. I didn't even think that was possible."

Kelly laughed quietly before sobering up. "I just want her to be OK."

"I know," Stella acknowledged, stroking his cheek. "I do too, and she's going to be OK. We all will be."

Kelly nodded again and this time, Stella could see he believed her words. She leaned forward and kissed him before settling back in his arms.

They were starting to drift off, almost back asleep, when the door to their bedroom opened. They opened their eyes to see Maya standing in the doorway, clutching her beloved firefighter teddy bear under one arm. (The bear had been a present from Squad for her second birthday and she'd slept with it for every nap and night since).

Kelly sat up in bed, now wide awake. "Maya, what's wrong? Did you have another bad dream?"

Maya shook her head, her messy curls cascading around her face, and squeezed her teddy bear.

By now, Stella had sat up and was staring at her daughter. "Come here, baby."

Maya slowly toddled her way over to her parent's bed, coming to a stop on Kelly's side. She raised her arms. "Daddy."

Kelly immediately leaned over and picked her up, hugging her tightly before sitting her on his lap. He pushed some of her curls out of her face. "You OK?"

"Can I sleep wiff you and mommy?"

Kelly and Stella shared a look. It was rare for Maya to ask to sleep in their bed with them, even in the immediate aftermath of her kidnapping. She'd always been independent—even as a baby she wasn't big on cuddling—but every once in a while, when she was sick or had had a particularly bad dream, she'd find her way into her parents' bed.

The fact that she was wanting to sleep with them meant that the nightmare she'd had earlier had shaken her up.

Kelly's heart broke and he hugged her again, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Of course, you can."

Stella reached over and stroked Maya's cheek. "let's get you tucked in, OK?"

Maya nodded, her head still resting against Kelly's chest.

Kelly moved Maya off his lap and laid her down in between him and Stella. Stella situated the toddler and her teddy bear, then pulled the blanket up to cover her.

As Stella and Kelly laid back down themselves, Stella started running her fingers through Maya's hair. "Close your eyes," Stella soothed. "Mommy and daddy are right here."

Maya did as she was told, the soothing motion of Stella's fingers in her hair and the security of having her parents around her lulling her to sleep. "Love you, mommy. Love you daddy."

Stella and Kelly each placed a kiss on Maya's forehead.

"We love you too baby."

"We love you so much."

Maya was able to give a small smile before she lost her fight against sleep.

Kelly and Stella exchanged one more look before trying to get back to sleep themselves, their hands joined on top of Maya.

Their family was still healing, but they were together, and they could handle anything.

A/N: I'm finished bringing over older Maya stories so I'll be back to posting new Maya stories next update!