Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) is at a complicated point in her career. She has the position she wants, and she's great at it. She works alongside her husband, Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney), who has admitted that he would be interested in having children. Kidd, on the other land? Less sure.
The character has been going back and forth regarding the possibility of a family. She has a lot of responsibility at Firehouse 51, and she doesn't want to leave her co-workers in unstable hands if she were to take maternity leave. Here's the thing, though. Chicago Fire may have just discovered an easy solution to this problem before it even surfaced.
Mouch could serve as Stella Kidd's 51 fill-in
Kidd's absence would be that Firehouse 51 needs a lieutenant to fill her position. Previously, there would to have been a call made to bring in someone from the outside. Now, however, 51 can promote from within. Mouch (Christian Stolte) just passed his lieutenant exam, and would likely jump at the chance to take on more responsibility and help his friend.
The character has had a complete turnaround in recent seasons. A near death experience has motivated him to step up and improve on both the health and work fronts. He's managed to do just that. He took the exam at the same time Christopher Herrmann (David Eigenberg) took the captain exam, and both men passed with flying colors.
Mouch's decision to take the exam, of course, puts him in a slightly tricky spot. The character does not have a full-time opening to fill at Firehouse 51, so if he wanted to get in time as a lieutenant, he would have to transfer somewhere else.
Stellaride has been considering kids for two seasons
This is what would make Kidd's pregnancy a two birds and one stone scenario. Kidd would get the opportunity to step away for several episodes (Miranda Rae Mayo was, notably, absent from the Fire winter premiere), and Mouch would get the chance to test his skills as a lieutenant in the field. It would allow him to see whether he enjoys it, and wants to pursue the position full time elsewhere, or if would prefer to stick around at 51.
Season 13 will seemingly play a role in this pivotal decision. Stella Kidd will get a visit from a family member during the episode, which is notable given how little we know about the character's family. Kidd hasn't had quite as much to do in the first half of the season 13, so we're excited to see what path she ultimately decides to go.