make it go away (part two)

Twenty-four hours later and things with Maya had gone from bad to worse, just like Dr. Michaels had warned. Maya was still struggling with her breathing and had been bumped from 3Ls of oxygen up to 5Ls. After a few failed feeding attempts, where Maya's oxygen stats dropped way too low, the baby had a feeding tube placed and Stella made the switch to pumping. It wasn't a pleasurable experience for either of them.

Maya's fever broke a few hours after they arrived at the hospital, which was the only thing going in their favor thus far.

Maya was uncomfortable and fussy with the IV in her arm and the oxygen cannula and feeding tube taped on her face. Despite only being two months old, Maya knew she was in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar things, and she did not like it. The only way she'd sleep or calm was in her parents' arms, meaning Kelly and Stella were as exhausted as Maya was.

They took turns; one would hold Maya so she could rest and sleep while the other would be free to walk around and stretch their legs, grab some coffee or something to eat, and go to the bathroom. Neither Kelly nor Stella ventured too far away from Maya's room though, not after the infant had knocked one of her monitors off, causing an alarm to sound. Everything was fine but the incident terrified Kelly and Stella enough to not want to be too far away from Maya.

Natalie, April, and the rest of their friends from Med popped up to the PICU to check on the Severides. Maya perked up at the newcomers and the attention they gave her and Kelly and Stella appreciated the coffee and snacks they brought with them. April even stayed after her shift ended and sat with Maya so Kelly and Stella could go down to the hospital cafeteria and get some semi-decent food. They weren't gone for long, despite April telling them to take their time.

Sleep was a foreign concept that night. Kelly and Stella took turns, alternating between sitting with Maya in the chair by her bed and sleeping on the pull-out couch, but between their worry, the uncomfortable furniture, nurses coming in and out at all hours, and Stella's pumping schedule no one got any decent rest.

When Maya's oxygen got bumped up, any hope of sleep was dashed.

Casey, Brett, Boden, and a few others from 51 checked in every few hours. Kelly and Stella gave them updates and even sent a picture or two. If the texts weren't enough indication as to how badly Kelly and Stella were struggling with Maya being sick, their faces (and the bags under their eyes) when they answered one of Brett's FaceTime calls left no doubt.

As Maya's godmother and Stella's best friend, Brett hated seeing the people she loved sick and struggling. She wanted to help them in any way she could, so she hatched a plan. Casey, Violet, and the rest of second shift were roped in throughout the day but no one complained; they all cared for and were worried about Maya and her parents. Everyone had their assignments and by the time their shift was over, they all went their separate ways with a plan to meet at the hospital in an hour.

… … …

Maya had just received her morning feeding and made her way back into Kelly's arms when there was a knock on the door. Kelly and Stella looked up and there in the doorway were their friends and teammates, armed with bags and what looked like the entire gift shop.

"Hey," Stella said, rising from her chair. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We just wanted to stop by, make sure you all were doing OK," Boden announced as the members of 51 started to cram into the hospital room. While they had all showered and changed clothes since their shift ended, they all wanted to keep a safe distance from the sick baby.

"I didn't know what all you guys had here, so Matt and I stopped by the loft and grabbed some stuff," Brett shared, placing the duffle bag she was carrying next to the pull-out couch. "And Cruz and Chloe grabbed some decent breakfast and coffee for you."

Sure enough, Cruz and Chloe made it into the room, to-go containers and coffee cups in their hands. They sat everything down on the roll-away table in the corner.

Tears welled in Stella's eyes. "Thank you guys so much."

"Of course," Brett cooed, wrapping an arm around Stella's shoulders and giving her a comforting hug.

A small raspy cough directed everyone's attention to the infant in Kelly's arms. He rubbed her back and adjusted his hold on her as she continued to cough. When Maya was finished coughing, she let out a tired, wheezing sigh and blinked her weary eyes.

It was an equally sad and adorable sight.

"How's she doing?" Casey asked, moving to Kelly's side.

"She's hanging in there," Kelly said, smiling slightly as Maya snuggled closer at the sound of his voice. "She's been fever free for almost 24 hours and the extra oxygen is helping."

"They scheduled her for another chest x-ray later this morning," Stella chimed in. "If her lungs are looking better, Dr. Michaels said they might try and lower her oxygen."

"Any idea how long they're going to keep Maya here?" Chloe asked, joining Brett at Stella's side.

"At least a few more days," Stella answered. "They need to get her completely off oxygen and make sure she can maintain her levels without help."

A few more questions were asked, but everyone's attention was soon diverted to Capp and Gallo who, rather unceremoniously, dropped their armfuls of gifts in the corner of the room. There were stuffed animals, balloons, a blanket, candy, and flowers…..way more than anyone needed, let alone a two-month-old.

Kelly raised an eyebrow. "Did you two leave anything in the gift shop for anyone else?"

"They would've bought more," Tony started, an amused but annoyed smirk on his face. "But the manager kicked them out for causing a disturbance."

"It was his fault!" Capp and Gallo said at the same time, pointing at each other.

That started an argument between the two. Although it brought some levity to the situation, Stella stepped in before things got too heated. "Guys, we appreciate the thought and the love but Maya's two months old. I don't think she needs any of this stuff."

Capp and Gallo looked around at everything they'd bought. Sheepish smiles stretched across their faces, almost as if they just realized how overboard they'd gone.

Gallo shrugged. "Eh. Keep what you guys need and what you think Maya would like and donate the rest to the other kids and families on the floor."

Stella and a few others huffed out a laugh before returning to their conversations.

Everyone stayed around for a little while longer until it was clear Maya was losing steam. They all said their goodbyes, leaving the baby and her parents to get some much-needed rest.

Brett and Casey were the last to leave, promising to swing by again later in the day. It was clear that Kelly and Stella were tired and frazzled and Brett and Casey hoped they'd be able to help. Their friends needed a break outside the four walls of Maya's hospital room.

They weren't expecting Kelly and Stella to spend the night at home, but they hoped they could at least get the anxious parents out of the hospital long enough to shower and eat actual food.

It wasn't an easy task by any means, but Brett and Casey managed to convince them. They had arrived back at the hospital around dinnertime—Maya had just gotten a feeding, her stats were holding steady, and she was ready to sleep. It was a hard sell at first but after Maya showed she would happily sleep in Brett's and Casey's arms, Kelly and Stella finally agreed.

Despite the constant text updates and pictures sent, Stella and Kelly's break only lasted a few hours. Brett and Casey hoped they would've been gone longer, but they had to admit the anxious parents looked a bit more refreshed.

… … ...

It was nearly 36 hours later when things changed again, this time for the better. An updated chest x-ray showed that Maya's lungs had cleared, so the doctors started weaning her off the higher oxygen. They started slow, moving Maya down from 5Ls to 4Ls and monitoring her closely for several hours. When Maya passed all the tests with flying colors, she was moved down from 4Ls to three.

A few hours later and Maya was back down to 2Ls of oxygen and doing great.

Dr. Michaels kept Maya on 2Ls for a while, wanting to test and see if they could remove the feeding tube. They gave Maya a bottle first and Kelly, Stella, and Dr. Michaels had their attention glued to Maya's oxygen stats—they held steady and strong. It was a big step in the right direction, but Dr. Michaels wasn't ready to remove the tube yet. He wanted to see how Maya did with a few more feeds throughout the day.

Maya continued to excel with her feedings, both with the bottle and without, and by dinnertime that day, her feeding tube had been successfully removed.

As Maya got better, the spark returned to her eyes and she began smiling and giggling again. The stress and tension melted from Kelly and Stella and as Maya recovered, they allowed themselves to breathe again.

… … …

Four days after Maya was admitted to the hospital, she was being discharged. The doctors had no reservations about letting Maya go home. She was over the worst of the RSV and was back to her normal, happy self, but Kelly and Stella knew they'd be watching the two-month-old like a hawk for days and weeks to come.

The past four days had been the longest of Kelly's and Stella's lives and they were beyond ready to bring their little girl back home.

As they walked out of the hospital doors, Maya securely buckled into her car seat, memories from two months earlier flooded Kelly's and Stella's minds. Leaving the hospital with their newborn daughter and bringing her home for the first time had been one of the best moments of their lives and although this hospital homecoming was different from the last, it was no less special.

Maya was happy and healthy and their family was together. There was nothing more special than that.

A/N: Yay! Maya's all better!

I hope you guys enjoyed!

See you (hopefully soon) for the next update!