Built to Break
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Summary
Built to Break is an highly requested alternate-universe story within The Quiet Fight series, where Shane—not Ilya—is the one facing cancer.
During their eleventh NHL seasons, a lingering injury reveals a devastating diagnosis, forcing an early coming out and the potential end of Shane’s career. As Shane fights, he is forced to find a new purpose, proving that even when the body breaks, a life—and a legacy—can still be rebuilt.
Series
- Part 1 of Built to Break
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Summary
This may not sounds like a happy story— but we don't believe in sad endings around here. This is a beautifully happy story born from tragedy, the way real life often is.
This fic is an alternate ending (major character death) to Built to Break. It begins in Chapter 18, in the OR, when surgeons discover Shane’s Ewing sarcoma cannot be fully removed. Clean margins aren’t possible, and the goal shifts from cure to comfort. If you’ve read Built to Break, you can start at Chapter 18. It also works as a standalone—though rereading from Chapter 1, knowing how it ends, might hit a little harder in the gut.
What follows is the story of his final year— intentional, painful, and deeply beautiful—and the love that carries him through it. But this story does not end when Shane does. It continues through the aftermath: the firsts, the grief, the anger, and the slow, stubborn choice to keep living a life he would be proud of. It’s about chosen family, about carrying someone forward, and about believing that love doesn’t end here on earth.
Series
- Part 2 of Built to Break