This Thursday (Oct. 16) marks one year since Liam Payne’s passing.
Over the weekend, his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, reflected on the upcoming anniversary and shared how she’s been coping with the loss.
“One year ago today, on Oct. 12, was the last day that I spent with Liam,” Cassidy said. “I feel, honestly, extremely numb today. I actually think somebody could slap me across the face, and I wouldn’t even be fazed.”
She went on to share a heartfelt reminder: “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.”
The influencer also spoke more about her last interaction with the late star in Argentina. She had accompanied him on the first part of the trip, but left just a few days before his fatal fall.
“I was sitting on the couch, just expressing to him how much I’m going to miss him, how much I love him,” she explained. “Honestly, it’s so weird to look back at because it was such a long, heartfelt goodbye. He looked at me, and he said, ‘[Kate], you’re going to miss your flight. You’re acting like this is the last time you’re ever going to see me again.’ And little did I know, it literally was the last time I got to see him.”
She said, “I’m so, so glad that me and Liam had that last goodbye the way it was.”
On Oct. 16, 2024, the former One Direction singer fell from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was later discovered that Payne had alcohol and multiple other substances in his system, including “pink cocaine,” which could include ketamine, MDMA, meth, and caffeine. Payne suffered from “multiple trauma” and “internal and external bleeding” after the fall, and five people have since been charged in his death.
In April, on the podcast On Purpose With Jay Shetty, Cassidy opened up for the first time about Liam’s death and shared the story of their last conversation.
“When I think about the last day and the last words that we said to each other, it brings me this mixture of pain and peace,” Cassidy told Shetty. “We’d just bought a new house. We just got a dog. We just moved to America as well. … It was just all these new beginnings, and it was in just such a positive light. So I remember sitting there with him, and I was going on and on and on, and saying to Liam how much I love him.”
Cassidy dated Payne from 2022 until his death.
