make it go away (part one)

Being a new parent was scary.

There was a huge learning curve and so many unknowns. Although Kelly and Stella both took to parenthood like fish to water, things beyond their control, things they couldn't plan for, still tested their confidence as parents.

One of those things? Their teeny, tiny two-month-old baby getting sick for the first time.

It was flu season and RSV was running rampant across the country and every time Stella turned on the news, she felt like the only thing she would see was stories about RSV and record-breaking hospitalizations. It was scary and every story made Stella hold Maya that much closer.

With her still being on maternity leave and snow having already made its home throughout Chicago, Stella didn't take Maya out much. Doctor's appointments, grocery shopping (curbside pickup), and the occasional trip to visit Kelly at the station when Stella was feeling stir-crazy were the only times Maya ever left the safety and security of the loft. No one other than Kelly and Stella was allowed to kiss Maya and their friends had to practically bathe in hand sanitizer before getting to hold the infant. It was all to keep the baby safe, but germs were everywhere and even though those around her were careful, Maya still got sick.

It started with a stuffy nose and a cough. Kelly noticed it first when he got Maya up in the morning when he got home from his shift. The baby had been extra clingy the day before but neither parent could figure out why…until the coughing started.

Maya's cough lingered for a few days. It wasn't really getting better, but it also wasn't getting any worse.

Until it did.

They first noticed something else was wrong when they felt how warm Maya was when she woke up from her nap. She had a slight fever of 99.6, which thankfully wasn't high enough to mean a mad dash to the nearest ER, but it did cause some nerves for the new parents, especially when paired with Maya's newly acquired cough. Stella called their pediatrician's office but because it was the weekend, she only got to speak to the off-hours nurse who was, in Stella's opinion, less than helpful.

They tried their best to keep Maya's fever down and make sure she stayed hydrated, but her cough and stuffy nose made nursing harder (and messier) than usual. Finding a balance between keeping the infant cool and keeping her in front of the humidifier to help with her cough and congestion was difficult but Maya was still her calm, happy self regardless of how bad she felt.

Her fever fluctuated throughout the night, keeping both anxious parents awake. They'd decided around 2:00 am that they'd call Maya's pediatrician's office as soon as they opened to try and get Maya in to be seen. Kelly had a shift later that morning, but he'd already told Boden that Maya was sick and was certain his Chief would be OK with him being a little late to shift. When Maya was involved, he could get away with almost anything—the little girl had everyone wrapped around her tiny fingers.

They never made it to the pediatrician and Kelly didn't make it to work that day.

Maya's fever, after holding steady around 99-100 degrees for several hours, spiked just before 7 am leaving the infant lethargic and fussy. Her cough had worsened to a wheeze and one glance at the little girl's chest showed just how much of a struggle breathing was.

That was the last straw for the anxious parents, and they immediately threw their necessities into Maya's diaper bag and headed to the hospital, desperate to get Maya some help.

… … …

If anything good came from Kelly and Stella's frequent visits to Med (both as patients and first responders), it was the relationships they had with a lot of the doctors and nurses there. More specifically, and most importantly for what they're experiencing at this moment, their relationship with the doctors and nurses in the ED.

All it took was one quick phone call with April and, by the time Kelly, Stella, and Maya arrived at Gaffney, Natalie Manning and a treatment room were waiting for them.

… … …

It didn't take long for Natalie to figure out what was wrong with Maya—she had RSV. It was the diagnosis Stella had feared since she saw that first news report.

She and Kelly had tried SO hard to keep Maya safe from RSV and other germs and viruses her little body would struggle to fight off, especially this time of year. They had been careful, but apparently not careful enough because Maya was sick. They failed her.

Stella felt guilty. She berated herself for those few surprise firehouse trips she took Maya on. Yes, Maya loved seeing her daddy and Stella liked getting out of the house and visiting with the team, but Maya was still tiny and her immune system wasn't fully developed. It was stupid and selfish and put Maya at risk unnecessarily. Tears pricked at Stella's eyes as she thought about it. Stupid.

Kelly saw Stella getting emotional and he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close. He had an idea about how she was feeling because he was feeling it too.

He was the one going all over Chicago during rescues. He was the one in near constant close contact with victims, Academy recruits, and co-workers. Who knew what kind of germs he brought home with him every day? What all had he exposed Maya to? The pandemic had taught them all the importance of hand washing but how many times had he rushed through the process in his hurry to hold his baby girl after a long shift? Stupid.

"Her oxygen levels are lower than I'd like to see," Natalie announced, snapping the worried parents out of their guilty thoughts. "But she's not in the danger level yet. I'm going to admit her into the PICU and we'll get her on some oxygen and some IV meds."

Stella and Kelly nodded their consent. Even if Natalie's words confirmed their fears about how sick Maya was, the fact that she was getting the help she needed helped calm their nerves slightly.

Natalie got Maya situated on the infant bed then moved back and allowed the nurses to bring up the bars and start rolling Maya out of the room and transferring her upstairs. Stella and Kelly followed closely behind, Natalie walking with them.

"How has she been with feedings?"

"Not great," Stella sighed. "She was nursing just fine at first but when her cough started getting worse, she started struggling."

Natalie nodded. "We'll add some fluids to her IV as well. If she wants to nurse go ahead and let her but if it continues to still be a struggle we might have you pump and give her a bottle or, if it comes to it, a NG tube."

"A feeding tube?!"

"That's the worst-case scenario," Natalie soothed. "I don't see it getting to that point, because the supplemental oxygen is helping, but I want you to be aware of everything."

One look at Stella and Kelly's faces and Natalie continued. "I know this is all overwhelming and scary but Maya is doing really well."

Knowing Natalie was trying to reassure them, Kelly gave her a quick, small smile. His eyes never left Maya though.

The trip from the ED to the PICU didn't take long. They got Maya settled into her room where Dr. Michaels, one of the PICU Pediatricians, was waiting for them. He and Natalie worked together to get Maya on the monitors and comfortable.

Natalie got paged back down to the ED a few minutes later. She hurried out of the room with a promise to check in on them later, leaving the Severides alone with Dr. Michaels. They'd never met the man before, but Mrs. Goodwin ran a tight ship (Halstead antics excluded) and trusted the doctors she employed. If she trusted Dr. Michaels, they would too.

They stood on one side of Maya's bed while Dr. Michaels stood on the other, listening to her lungs and how they were responding to the oxygen. Maya laid pitifully on the bed, her tiny body looking incredibly small even in the infant bed. Her tired, fevered eyes followed the doctor's moves carefully.

Maya's favorite place to be when she was tired or not feeling well was in someone's arms so the fact the little girl just laid there was a true testament to how bad she felt.

When Dr. Michaels finished his check, he took a small step away from the bed and addressed Kelly and Stella. "So, I'm hearing some minor crackling in her lungs, which is typical with RSV. We have her on 3Ls of oxygen right now, but I would like to warn you that that number is likely to increase before it decreases as the virus works its way out of her system. It's not a guarantee, just a possibility. She's on IV fluids to keep her hydrated and her fever has already started to come down. She's pretty sick but, all things considered, she's doing pretty well."

Kelly and Stella nodded again, worry slowly starting to loosen its grip on them. Maya already had clenched one of Stella's fingers in her fist, so Kelly placed a hand on the top of Maya's head. The little girl immediately turned toward the hand, making her parents laugh. Despite how sick Maya was, she was still a complete daddy's girl.

"Can we hold her?" Kelly asked.

"Absolutely!" Dr. Michaels answered. "I know Natalie spoke with you about her feedings. If she wants to nurse I encourage you to let her but if it's still a struggle we can try giving her bottles or move on to different means if necessary."

Stella nodded. She looked at the doctor, down at her daughter, and back up to the doctor again. "Do you know how long she'll have to be here?"

"Unfortunately, RSV is one of those things where you can only treat the symptoms and not the virus as a whole—its something that just has to run its course." Dr. Michaels noted. "How soon Maya gets out of here all depends on how well her body responds."

It wasn't what Kelly and Stella wanted to hear. They hated unknowns. The investigator in Kelly always wanted to find answers but that just wasn't something he was able to do right now.

Dr. Michaels left shortly after with a promise to check in often, leaving the anxious parents alone with their daughter.

A nurse came in immediately after, showing them how to pick Maya up and hold her without messing up the monitors and cords attached to her. She handed Maya to Kelly, who immediately cradled the little girl against his chest. He frowned slightly at the heat still radiating from the infant.

Maya seemed unbothered by the fever and just snuggled impossibly closer to her daddy. It hadn't even been an hour since arriving at the hospital, but she was clearly feeling better, despite how warm she still felt. Thanks to the oxygen, Maya was breathing easier and the IV had given her a bit more energy.

Kelly placed a kiss on the top of Maya's head and gently started swaying back and forth.

With Maya safe and secure in Kelly's arms, Stella shot a quick text off to Brett and Boden filling them in on Maya's condition and letting Boden know he'd need to find a floater for Squad. She apologized to Boden for the late notice, even attaching a sweet but very sad picture of Kelly and Maya in the hospital room to the message to soften the blow, but the Chief just told her and Kelly to focus on Maya.

So that's what they did. That's what was most important at the time. Nothing else mattered other than being with Maya and getting her healthy.

A/N: see y'all next week for part two!

shoutout to my sister, who's a respiratory therapist at a children's hospital, and Google for all the RSV info...and my friend's son who went through this exact same thing. He's back to being healthy and is thriving, just like Maya will be (spoiler alert)

Please let this serve as your reminder to wash your hands and do NOT kiss babies that are not yours.