Less than six months after the shocking death of Liam Payne, the One Direction bandmate’s ex-fiancee opened up about the struggles she was during their tumultuous relationship.
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Payne and Henry first romantically linked in 2018 and became engaged in 2020. After being on and off for a year, they called things off for good in 2022. Her 2024 book, Looking Forward, was based on the “true events” of their relationship.
“While I loved him deeply, he did things that hurt me in ways I’ll never fully understand,” she told Rolling Stone. “And he continued to hurt me years after we broke up.”
Among the ways that Payne hurt her included him allegedly sharing intimate photos of her with friends. Henry explained that Payne’s drug addiction tore their relationship apart.
“On drugs, he became someone unrecognizable — so different from his sober self,” she continued. “I kept hoping each incident would be a wake-up call for him to get help, but it never was. I tried to be there for him.”
She also pointed out, “I loved him so much that I convinced myself I could fix things.”
Henry then said she knew Liam struggled with parts of his identity that he wasn’t ready to face fully.
“In the end, it wasn’t just the betrayals or the addictions that broke us,” she pointed out. “It was the realization that I had spent years in something that was never what I thought it was. I don’t fault him for his struggles.”
Liam Payne died after falling from the balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Oct. 16, 2024. A toxicology report released in November by the prosecutor’s office said Payne had traces of “alcohol, cocaine, and prescription antidepressants” in his system at the time of his death.
Liam Payne and His Ex-Fiancée Were in a Legal Battle at the time of the Musician’s Sudden Death
A source previously told PEOPLE that Payne was “extremely overwhelmed by all of the legal issues” involving Henry. The model had issued a cease-and-desist order a week before the One Direction alum’s death. She alleged in the order that he had repeatedly contacted her.
Henry also revealed in a TikTok video that one of her exes continuously blew up her phone. However, she alluded to which ex she was referring to but stated that he associated with “One Direction fans.”
“It’s always from different phone numbers too. I never know where it’s going to come from… Also, [he] will email me,” Henry claimed in the TikTok post. “Not only me, but he’ll blow up my mom’s phone. Is that normal behavior to you?”
She also said that the ex had been messaging her friends. “I found out later so they could go over to his house, apparently.”
Henry went on to allege that Payne “weaponized” One Direction fans against her. “He says that he ‘preys on One Direction fans because they will always be loyal to him and they won’t tell on him.’”