In the story everybody had a fake identity. When the officer is walking un the avenue one night,the man that was standing in a corner alone explains the polceman he is just waiting for a friend. In this scene there's something strange,This man is familiar to the cop and the cop is familiar to the man but they dont know who each other is,or... do they? Does Bob really know Jimmy Wells? Can he trust him? Will Jimmy meet Bob? Just Jimmy knows the answers to this questions because he is the one who choose a good path in those 20 years. All this happens the firt half of the story and is quite boring because it looks usual and its confusing.
The characters have real identities too. Jimmy Wells and Bob go to a cafeteria where a man acuses jimmy of not being Jimmy Wells, and then the note that would clear everything for Bob is handed in to him. Patrolman Wells was the one who send it. Now Bob knows the cophe talk to was Jimmy who didnt met him later that knight because Bob was a criminal Jimmy was looking for. This is my fdavoruite part the one that brings suspense,mistery and awesomeness to the story. I really enjoy the end of the story because of the suspense of Bob when he found out and their secret identities towards each other.
In coclusion "after twenty years" by O.Henry is a misterious and enjuoyable story when we found out Jimmy Wells is a cop and the criminal he is looking for is he's twentry-years-ago-best-friend.