Kate Cassidy has opened up about the last text she received from Liam Payne before he tragically died last year.
Payne was staying at the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina when the tragedy occurred.
On October 16, 2024, the former One Direction star fell from his third-floor balcony and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Fans flooded in from around the world to lay tributes to the star, with his funeral taking place in Amersham in the UK in November.
Prior to his death, his girlfriend Kate Cassidy had been in Argentina with him but had left to return to Florida.
In a recent interview with the Sun, Cassidy revealed that she had left Payne behind so she could return to care for their dog.
“Love is so optimistic, and you just hope that everything will work out at the end. Obviously if I knew, if I could see into the future, I would never have left Argentina,” she said.
She explained that their original plan was to stay in Argentina for about a week, but they had extended their trip.
“After two weeks, I had a responsibility, we had a responsibility, we had our dog,” Cassidy added.
Describing Payne as her “charming soulmate,” she admitted: “I never thought this would’ve happened.”
When she returned home to Florida, Cassidy prepared for the Halloween season, decorating their house in anticipation of his return.
"I can't wait for you to get home and see the house," she texted him.
The 25-year-old also shared the final photograph she took of Payne - a snapshot of him on horseback during a trail ride towards the end of their South America trip.
"He looks so happy," she said.
Cassidy also recalled the harrowing moment she found out about Payne’s death while scrolling through TikTok at home with their dog, Nala.
“I didn’t believe it at first. I thought it was just a rumour. Or something that somebody made up just to get views. Then instantly I just had a bad feeling in my gut. I was like, ‘Why would somebody make this up? Is this true?’” she said.
“And I feel like I just completely blacked out. When I officially found the news out to be true, I felt numb. I tried to call him. I called pretty much everybody.”
She heartbreakingly added that their dog thought she was “trying to play” as she paced around the house in shock, unable to sleep that night.
At a December 17 hearing at Buckinghamshire Coroner's Court, Senior Coroner Crispin Butler noted that establishing the full circumstances of Payne’s death “may take some time” due to ongoing legal proceedings in Argentina.
However, a UK inquest has officially attributed his cause of death to "polytrauma," according to The Mirror US.