Liam Payne’s sister Nicola has shared a heartbreaking tribute to her late brother, and revealed that she learned of his death via the news. In a touching Instagram post that also included many photos of Payne, Nicola paid tribute to her brother, writing, “I have posted about Liam and his achievements over the years with a proud sister alert and that has stood then, now and always!!!”
“When I saw the news pop up on my phone that you had left us I went cold, I wanted so much for this to be untrue,” she went on to share. “I have spent days hoping that it was a mistake and somebody has got it wrong. You were truly too good for this earth, you are an angel who just lived for making people smile and happy.”
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Nicola went on to add that her famous sibling had always shown “kindness” to others and expressed that the innumerable memorials from fans online “confirmed what we always knew” about the One Direction member.
Payne’s sister also made a point to note that she and their family often avoided taking pictures with him because they “never wanted him to feel like he was in a room of fans,” adding, “but we were your biggest fans now and forever.”
“Your talent alone puts you miles ahead, but also you being you,” Nicola continued. “I have been looking back at the messages from the night I had Ffion, how excited you were to meet her, the jokes we all shared and the laughter that you knew we all needed.”
Nicola also shared that Payne’s motto was “why bother doing something unless you are brilliant at it, and Liam you were certainly brilliant at everything you did!!”
“Unfortunately this cruel world is always to quick to judge someone from a few 5 second clips, they then think it entitles them to be able to speak like they know you. We knew you and we loved you,” Nicola added. “I hope you have finally found peace up there and that you’ll continue to look after us all as you have done in life. We will make sure Bear knows about his daddy and how much you loved him, we promise this.”
The loving sister concluded her post: “See you soon, Liam, Love You xx.”
Payne died on Wednesday, after falling from his third-floor room at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Officials later reported that an investigation found Payne had jumped from the balcony.