Note: This article contains discussion of themes including a stillbirth, which some readers may find upsetting.
Emmerdale's Lydia Hart opened up to her fiancé Sam Dingle about her past after she handed herself into the police at the end of last week.
Tonight's (July 8) episode saw Sam (James Hooton) continue to fret over Lydia's whereabouts, unaware that she'd spent the night at the local police station after admitting that the human bones found by the school were that of her baby.
As a desperate Sam went to the police station himself to report Lydia as missing, he was shocked to come face-to-face with his fiancée, prompting Lydia to come clean.
"The baby they found, it was mine," she told Sam.
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Sam encouraged her to return home and talk to him, where Lydia explained that her real name is Jenny Finn, and that Lydia Hart was actually the identity of a girl who died when she was living in a bedsit.
She then went on to reveal more details, explaining that she got pregnant by a boy named Craig Reed when she was 15.
"I was daft and careless," Lydia said. "Stupid, mostly. When I found out I was pregnant, I thought they'd make me give it to someone else. Who'd let a 15-year-old in care keep a baby?"
Speaking about the baby's birth, Lydia said that the baby boy was "born sleeping", so she gave him a kiss, said she was sorry and "wrapped him in a jumper while [she] cleaned up".
"Then I took him outside, under my coat," she continued. "My legs were like jelly. The others used to go to a youth club on a Wednesday, so it was quiet. There was some woodland nearby, so I found a place for him. I didn't know what else to do.
"I covered him over and walked away; just left him there. Not a single thing to prove he existed at all."
Lydia also confessed that she ran away from the children's home that same night as she was terrified that her peers would find out what she'd done, and she ended up in Scarborough where she met the real Lydia.
"I buried my baby, Sam... without a name or a proper grave," Lydia added. "People will no doubt think I'm mad or worse still, evil."
"You were scared," a supportive Sam reassured her. "You were a kid, and something terrible had happened. You didn't have anyone to help you. Bad things happen to folk, it doesn't make it your fault."
But Lydia was still determined to see her decision to talk to the police through, concluding: "I've got to pay for what I've done."
Emmerdale currently airs weekdays at 7pm on ITV, with an extra episode at 8pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Sands supports anyone affected by the death of a baby. You can contact the Sands National Helpline on 0808 164 3332, or email helpline@sands.org.uk.
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