The story is about people’s insecurities, which lead to destructive thinking. It is something everyone has experienced in their lives, making a reader worry and seek the truth in “Aftermath”. Sam is a married woman and a writer who struggles to start her crucial for life novel. With everything changing in the Post-Cold War era, people losing and quitting their jobs, and a new unsettling reality being exposed, Sam’s novel is her family’s only savior. Lately, things have not been well for Sam, her husband, Rob, and their little daughter. Rob has been coming home late for weeks for questionable reasons, while the couple never discussed it. These issues only made things worse for Sam and the family.
The future seems to be extremely vulnerable and unpredictable for the family. One evening, somebody unfamiliar tried to enter the apartment, while Sam’s daughter was asleep. It was Lizzie, Rob’s co-worker, with his home keys attempting to open the front door. Lizzie then sets all of the assumptions aside, saying that Rob got into a hospital because of working overtime. In turn, Sam hopes this event could finally put an end to her frustration and help their family return to regular happy life.
However, despite such a heartwarming and positive conclusion, the author leaves many questions unanswered. Lizzie, knowing that Rob is married and has a child, still tried to enter the apartment by herself, when she could simply knock on the door. Moreover, if Rob was indeed hospitalized, she could have told this right away and not tried to keep it a secret from Sam. Although these are only speculations, maybe it would be better if it was a real robber behind Sam’s front door that evening.