A young man named Nick had just graduated from agricultural college with a degree in animal science. He arrived in a small farming town, eager to start his first real job. The local farm manager, a gruff old-timer named Pete, met him with a skeptical look. "Here's the deal, Nick. You'll work at the far barn as an assistant livestock specialist. Pay is eighty dollars a week. And don't even ask about housing for the first year — we've got nothing. Talk to the local grannies, maybe one will rent you a room...

The first letter arrived in late February. Harry opened it without looking at the name on the envelope, and initially found the contents entirely confusing. It wasn’t until he fished the crumpled envelope from the trash that he realized the letter was meant for his neighbor. Harry’s neighbor was a university student by the name of Aya, and Harry was in love with her. The letter to her was written by a young man called Sota, who Harry surmised was attempting to establish contact after a prolonged distance of some kind...