Defy Winter

In the never-ending winter, the two went on a date.

The abnormal weather where “winter” had continued ever since the New Year began. The summer where temperatures never rose, the snow that fell in September. The rice harvest was hopeless, crude oil prices kept rising, and consumption had cooled. People gradually sank into despair, wondering if the world had already ended.

The beach in Izumimachi, Kanagawa Prefecture, was also covered in snow, with no sign of surfers, anglers, or yacht owners. For Amagi Yukihisa, a high school student who grew up in this town, it was a sight he had never imagined. Remote classes had become the norm due to the continuous snowfall. The world had completely changed.

With a snow shovel in hand, Yukihisa arrived at a certain place in the neighborhood. Beyond the metal gate stood a house with a unique design, its front wall entirely made of glass. A girl was shoveling snow within the property. She was Manase Minami, a classmate who had moved to this town from high school. She lived in this house alone. It had become a daily routine for Yukihisa to visit her house and help with the snow shoveling.

Yukihisa and Minami were already dating, but since they barely spoke at school, none of their classmates knew about it. In a world closed off by snow, the two secretly continued their dates.