Late Liam Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy is slowly moving on from the One Direction star’s tragic death as she continues to manage her grief while cautiously considering dating again
Kate Cassidy, the former girlfriend of late One Direction star Liam Payne, is gradually rebuilding her life a year after his death. Payne, 31, died on October 16, 2024, after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
A subsequent toxicology report revealed that alcohol, cocaine, and prescription antidepressants were in his system at the time. Cassidy, 26, struggled with severe depression following the tragedy, experiencing days when she would not even smile or leave her home.
“She was definitely not okay for a long time,” a friend has now told. “There were months where I literally didn’t see her smile, and I was seeing her every day.
“It was so concerning, she didn’t even seem like herself. She canceled a lot of hangouts and just was almost a recluse,” they added.
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The insider now says that Cassidy is spending more time with friends and is reportedly open to dating again, though she is taking things slowly.
“She’s hanging out with friends and she’s open to dating again, although she’s not quite there yet,” her friend told Daily Mail. “She’s moving forward now. She knows it’s what he would have wanted.”
Cassidy has also resumed posting on social media, sharing more upbeat content and fun-loving photos after months of silence.
She is simultaneously ignoring claims made by Braian Nahuel Paiz, 25, a former server at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel, who admitted supplying Payne with cocaine and alleged spending several hours in bed with him the day before his death.
Paiz did not claim to have had sex with Payne and Cassidy’s friend has now said that she is unfazed by the speculation.
“Kate doesn’t pay any attention to them,” her friend said. “She knows what she and Liam had, and that it was very, very good. Whatever happened after she left Argentina doesn’t change how she feels about Liam.
“Whatever that guy says happened, it doesn’t affect her, so she’s ignoring it,” they added.
Speaking publicly about her mental health, Cassidy said at a National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) event on October 6: “I was always just kind of doing nothing and just dealing with that grief and pain.
“I was just not wanting to really live my life. After several weeks, I finally realized, ‘Ok, I need to live my life, I need to get up, get out of bed.’”
She went on to explain that she started with small steps, setting alarms to wake earlier each day, working out, eating clean, and living her life not just for herself, but in memory of Payne.
Despite her efforts to move forward, Cassidy has faced criticism for some Instagram posts, including a recent video showing her being hoisted onto the shoulders of two men, with some fans calling it disrespectful.
Her friend defended her, saying: “This is her starting to smile again. This is the old Kate coming back. She knows, and everyone who knew Liam knows, this is what he’d want for her.”
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