The late Liam Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy has revealed her painful regret one year after the singer’s tragic death, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Payne died at age 31 on October 16, 2024, after he fell from his third-floor Buenos Aires hotel balcony.
Cassidy, 25, was with Payne in Argentina, where his former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan was playing a concert, but left the singer to go back to their Florida home after the trip was unexpectedly extended.
Payne died at age 31 on October 16, 2024.
Two days before Payne’s death, Cassidy shared a TikTok video chronicling her travel day home. In the video she noted how ready she was to get back.
After news of the Night Changes singer’s death made headlines, internet trolls slammed Cassidy for leaving Payne, who struggled with substance abuse and mental health issues, by himself.
Amid relentless scrutiny, Cassidy finally broke her silence.
Cassidy said Payne’s death ‘still doesn’t feel fully real for me.’
She confessed: “It still doesn’t feel fully real for me that he’s not here.”
According to an autopsy, alcohol, prescription medication, cocaine, crack and pink cocaine – a street drug often containing methamphetamine, ketamine ecstasy and other substances – were found in the British pop star’s system.
One friend close to Payne suggested Cassidy leaving early made the singer spiral, saying: “He wanted her to stay. She says he begged her to stay.”
A friend of Payne’s suggested he spiraled after Cassidy left him alone in Argentina.
While the pal appeared to try to place blame on Cassidy, she insisted she had a “responsibility” to return to the US to care for the couple’s dog, though she admitted she wish she would have made a different decision.
Cassidy explained: “Obviously If I knew, If I could see into the future, I would have never left Argentina.”
Regardless of her grief and pain, crazed fans continued bombarded the 25-year-old with hateful messages online. Cassidy claimed she has even received death threats.
Still, Payne’s girlfriend insisted: “I’m not to blame!”
Cassidy said she still feels ‘numb’ a year after Payne’s death.
As RadarOnline.com reported, Cassidy recently broke down in tears as she recalled her final moments with Payne ahead of the first anniversary of his death.
She shared a video on TikTok, saying: “One year ago today, on October 12, was the last day I spent with Liam.
“And I come on here not to cry. I feel, honestly, extremely numb today. I woke up. I actually weirdly — I feel like this numb. I actually think somebody could slap me across the face and I wouldn’t even be phased.”
Cassidy noted this may be why it has appeared like she doesn’t have “ton of emotions.”
She continued: “I wanted to make this video because I wanted to express how important it is to really remind your loved ones how much you love them. I know I always say it, but you never know what tomorrow brings.”
Cassidy went on to recall the “heartfelt goodbye” she shared with the 31-year-old, saying: “The last day that I was with Liam in Argentina before I left, the car was in the driveway and I was sitting on the couch just expressing to him how much I’m gonna miss him, how much I love him. Like, honestly, it’s so weird to look back at, because it was such a long, heartfelt goodbye.”
The grieving girlfriend said Payne even looked at her and told her she was acting like “this is the last time” she was “ever gonna see” him again.
She added: “And little did I know, it literally was the last time I got to see him.
“I’m so, so glad that me and Liam had that last goodbye the way it was. Just remember, you never know what tomorrow brings. And tell your loved ones that you love them. Hold them a little bit extra closer today. Bye guys.”
