A Pail of Air (1951) - Fritz Leiber

In the future, an isolated family struggles to survive in a frozen world after the Earth is torn from the Sun. This story explores many themes, the most prominent of which are hope, courage, and optimism, as well as resilience and the importance of human connection. If you’re rolling your eyes right now, well reading this story can't hurt (at the very least, it might provide some quality distraction). Pa had sent me out to get an extra pail of air. I'd just about scooped it full and most of the warmth had leaked from my fingers when I saw the thing. You know, at first I thought it was a young lady. Yes, a beautiful young lady's face all glowing in the dark and looking at me from the fifth floor of the opposite apartment, which hereabouts is the floor just above the white blanket of frozen air. I'd never seen a live young lady before, except in the old magazines—Sis is just a kid and Ma is pretty sick and miserable—and it gave me such a start that I dropped the pail. Who wouldn't,…