Cheryl Cole has broken her silence on the death of her ex and the father of her son, Liam Payne.
Taking to his Instagram account, Cole shared a black and white photo of Payne and hit back at those who have come after Payne during this difficult time.
“As I try to navigate this tumultuous event and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, I want to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being”.
“Liam is not just a pop star and a celebrity, he is also a son, a brother, an uncle, a close friend and a father to our 7-year-old son. A son now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again,” she continued.
Cole added: “What worries me is that Bear will one day have access to the abhorrent reports and media exploitation we have seen over the past two days. It pains me even more that I can’t protect him from that in the future.” .
“I implore you to consider the intended use of some of these reports, beyond causing further harm to those left to pick up the pieces. Before leaving a comment or creating a video, ask yourself Let’s see if you want to have children or a family of your own.” to read them,” she added.
“Please give Liam some dignity that he left behind in his death to finally rest in peace,” Cole concluded.
Payne and Cole first met when he appeared on the show X factor in 2008 when she served as a judge on the show. After completing his performance, Cole revealed his talent and called him “really cute”.
Although Payne ended up not being on the show at the time, he returned years later and was placed in a group called One Direction while Cole was still a judge.
The two were then apart for several years and rumors began that they were a couple after Cole divorced husband Fernandez-Versini in 2016.
In May of that year, they made their red carpet debut, and by March 2017, they welcomed their son Bear into the world.
The couple finally announced their split in 2018 after two years of dating.
The following year Cole spoke to Telegraph about their relationship.
“[Liam is] Much softer than me. But it is what it is and I’m okay with that. When you have children, you are no longer tired of thinking only about yourself. It’s your responsibility to keep things stable and happy so you get the best out of everything. And we have,” she said.
Payne then moved on with Maya Henry in 2019. However, they broke up and he was last with Kate Cassidy.
Since his death on October 16, there has been an outpouring of support from friends and loved ones.
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