Maya Henry is breaking her silence months after the death of her ex-fiancé Liam Payne.

The 25-year-old model spoke out publicly for the first time since Payne's death last year, sharing a lengthy statement to Rolling Stone published Tuesday (February 11) reflecting on his struggles with addiction and how it impacted their relationship. The pair dated off and on from 2018 to 2022, per People.

"This was someone I loved very much," she said. "Initially, it was the drug use and additions that tore us apart. Anyone who has been with an addict understands how difficult that is. While I loved him deeply, he did things that hurt me in ways I'll never fully understand, and he continued to hurt me years after we broke up."

The One Direction alum, who passed away October 16, 2024, at 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina, was reported to have been under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time of his death.

"On drugs, he became someone unrecognizable — so different from his sober self," she said. "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. I loved him so much that I convinced myself I could fix things."

Henry admitted to Rolling Stone that she put herself in "unsafe and harmful" situations while "ignoring every red flag" in their romance, acknowledging how "there were parts of himself he was struggling with — parts of his identity he wasn't ready to fully face, even within our relationship.

However, the end of their relationship wasn't just a result of the "betrayals" and addictions. Henry, who said she didn't "fault" Payne for his struggles, said she was left feeling empty and "defrauded" after their split as "it was the realization that I had spent years in something that was never what I thought it was."

"I stood by him in his darkest moments, through the chaos, through the pain, through things that broke me in ways I can't explain. And yet, when it was all over, I was left with nothing but emptiness," she said. "The love I gave, the sacrifices I made — they weren't enough because they never could be. I wasn't just heartbroken; I felt defrauded, as so many women in my position would."

She continued, "But what I do know is this: It wasn't about me or anything I did. It was about struggles beyond my control. And in the end, I had to choose myself. I had to walk away, no matter how much it hurt, because staying in his world meant losing myself."

Henry and Payne were first linked in August 2018 but didn't confirm their relationship until a year later. The got engaged in 2020 before briefly splitting in June 2021, reconciling a few months later before ultimately calling it quits the following year. Payne went on to date Kate Cassidy, who he was with up until his death. The 25-year-old influencer recently opened up about his final days in her first interview since his death, admitting that "it still doesn't feel real."

Jo Mercer