MANY rape survivors face questions they’d rather not answer and sometimes, their nearest and dearest fail to bring them support.
Amy Barlow is set to be accused of lying about her ordeal by one of her closest friends next week in Coronation Street.
Amy Barlow was raped after a drunken evening with Aaron Sandford
However, Aaron simply told his girlfriend Summer that they slept together
Summer confronts Amy next week
The teen portrayed by Elle Mulvaney was taken advantage of by Aaron Sandford (James Craven) after a drunken evening.
But when she confronted the lad about his actions, he insisted they were both drunk and consensual before pleading with her to stay quiet and not say anything to his girlfriend Summer Spellman (Harriet Bibby).
Since then, Amy has remained quiet but her trauma is slowly coming to light to those around her.
Next week on ITV, Amy gets ready for Daisy Midgeley and Daniel Osbourne’s wedding.
As she stands awkwardly in her bridesmaid dress Adam Barlow (Sam Robertson) gives her a friendly squeeze and she flinches.
Her reaction doesn’t go unnoticed by Simon (Alex Bain) but when he tries to broach the subject, she snaps at him – just as her mother Tracy (Kate Ford) clocks the exchange.
Meanwhile, the truth catches up with Aaron when Summer reads a text on his phone which suggests to Amy they put things behind them.
Summer demands to know what’s going on and, stealing himself, Aaron admits they slept together the night of their big breakup.
However, Aaron assures Summer it was a one off and they both regret it – but she’s still devastated.
Summer confronts Amy who bursts into tears and assures her she’s got it all wrong.
But she only opens up to her mother Tracy about how Aaron raped her.
The florist is horrified as Amy describes how she passed out drunk and Aaron sexually assaulted her.
Amy is urged by both Tracy and her father Steve to report Aaron to the police – will he be arrested?
This remains to be seen but while Amy will be getting the support she needs from her parents, Summer won’t be as helpful to her.
In later scenes, she strides over and demands that Amy apologise for sleeping with Aaron.
When Amy reveals she was actually raped, Summer is shocked and accuses her of lying.
Amy insists she never consented to sex with Aaron and the police are taking her allegation seriously.
But when she’s faced with DS Swain, Amy is asked to answer some awkward questions which make her feel like the guilty party.
Coronation Street airs every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8pm on ITV.
Amy reports Aaron to the police
But will he be brought to justice?
