Of all Kelly Severide's close relationships on "Chicago Fire," perhaps his closest is with lesbian paramedic Leslie Shay (Lauren German). In fact, the two even try to have a child together via in vitro fertilization. This effort fails, however, and Shay dies in a building collapse in Season 2 in a building collapse in Season 2. Discussing the effect Shay's death has on Kelly, executive producer Matt Olmstead told TV Line that Severide is "...a guy who is like, 'Who knows if you're going to be here tomorrow?'" Olmstead then goes on to add: "...is he just avoiding the loss of Shay?... trying to outpace this grief that even he acknowledges that he hasn't dealt with yet."
Fans also seem unwilling to let Shay-veride go. On the show's subreddit in the thread titled, "I will die on this hill," the original poster declared, "Kelly and Shay's attempt to have a baby together should've been successful and it would've been a great opportunity to have Kelly as a single working father." Another Redditor agreed the show overlooked a great plot line: "I will never forgive the writers for not seeing it through," and added that sometimes "fanfic writers have a better grasp of these characters than the actual show bosses." And summing up positive fan thoughts about the unrealized Shay-veride storyline, Reddit user Schadenfreulein insisted: "... my God would that have been one fine looking child!"
