Kate Cassidy (27) is having several tattoos removed that remind her of her late boyfriend Liam Payne (1993-2024). After comments like "She doesn't love him anymore" were posted under one of her videos, the influencer responded on TikTok and made it clear: The laser treatment has nothing to do with her feelings for the former One Direction star.
@kateecass Replying to @Sammi Herrera🥀🖤
♬ original sound - Kateecass
"I knew some of you would be offended because I decided to laser these tattoos off my body", Cassidy says in the clip. And explains: "The only reason I'm getting these tattoos removed is literally just because they're too thick. They were the very first tattoos I ever got, and I went to a completely random studio."
From chunky to fine
At the time, she had requested a so-called fine-line tattoo, a particularly delicate, ultra-thin line work. She had assumed that the result would turn out more delicate than what ended up on her skin. Instead, what came out was something "thick, chunky".
The 27-year-old explicitly wanted to make clear that the motifs had not become meaningless to her. "Listen, the meaning behind all my tattoos is so, so important to me", she emphasized. "I'm not having them lasered for any other reason than that I'm going to get them redone somewhere else, by someone with experience in fine-line tattoos."
Meaningful numbers
The controversial motif in question is a "444", a homage to Payne. The number sequence was considered their angel number by the couple. It's not the only memory Cassidy carries on her skin: There's also an angel wing, the initials "LP" on her wrist, a wilted rose on her thumb, and a 4, also on her wrist.
Cassidy and Payne were a couple for almost two years. They had met in September 2022 at a restaurant in Charleston, South Carolina, where Cassidy was working at the time. Their red carpet debut followed as early as December of the same year at the British Fashion Awards in London. In 2024, she made it public that she was living with the singer in Florida.
She flew back two days before the tragedy
In October 2024, Cassidy had traveled to Argentina together with Payne. Two days before his death, she returned to Florida. Payne fell from the balcony of a third-floor hotel room and died at the age of 31.
Cassidy has since spoken openly about her grief. "I feel like my life has changed so much, and I think about Liam every second of every day", she told the British newspaper "The Sun" in February 2025. "It still doesn't feel quite real to me that he's not here. Sometimes I wake up, and it's a reality I have to face for the rest of my life."
