EastEnders will be exploring Derek Harkinson's backstory next week as a dark secret from his past comes back to haunt him.
The latest story will kick off when Patrick's ex-wife Yolande returns to Walford again, this time armed with some bad news for Derek.
Viewers know that Derek recently landed a job at Walford's Minute Mart and Yolande works in the supermarket's head office – having recently been involved in an important decision over Denise Fox's future at the store.
Fans will have to wait and see just what it is that Yolande tells Derek, but her visit leaves him feeling deeply unsettled and on edge.
Things get worse for Derek when he has an altercation with troublesome teen Keegan, before receiving some even more upsetting news that leaves him at rock bottom.
Dismayed, an angry Derek confronts Johnny Carter, who witnessed his earlier altercation with Keegan but failed to do anything. But as Johnny does his best to make things up to Derek, he soon realises that all is not as it seems.
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After tracking him down, Johnny encourages Derek to reveal what's really going on, prompting the pair to have a heart-to-heart as Derek reveals everything.
However, Derek makes a sad decision in the wake of confessing all to Johnny – deciding that it's time to leave Walford behind for good.
Determined to help, Johnny enlists Patrick's support to stop Derek from leaving, but can they get through to him? And more to the point, what has Derek been hiding?
EastEnders airs these scenes next week on BBC One.
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