Liam Payne's ex Danielle Pleazer pens heartbreaking tribute: "I'm sorry your story didn't end differently"

Liam Payne's ex-girlfriend, Danielle Pleazer, has paid tribute to the former One Direction star after his tragic death at the age of 31.  © Collage: Screenshot/Instagram/@daniellepleazer & Mark Sagliocco / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

The 36-year-old broke her silence on her ex's death in a heart-wrenching tribute shared to Instagram on Sunday.

She addressed her message to "LJP" – the musician's initials – and wrote, "This still doesn't feel real."

"Despite being aware of your struggles over the years, I hoped and prayed this day would never come. But now we're all facing the reality of living a life without your presence."

Danielle, who first met Liam through The X Factor in 2010 and dated for about two years, wrote that he was her "favorite person in the whole world" during their romance and said, "Our relationship may have ended back in 2013, but that seemed to be just the start of our story."

The dancer revealed that Liam had reached out to her "a couple of weeks ago" to share his "happiness for the love" she has with her partner, Sonny Jay, and their daughter, Mia.

"I'm sorry your story didn't end differently, and I'm sorry you didn't ever get to share more of your magic with the world," Danielle added.

Tributes have been pouring in across social media in the wake of Liam's death at just 31 years old after he fell three stories from the balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires last week.

Liam Payne died at the age of 31 after falling from the balcony of his Buenos Aires hotel room last week.  © Bertrand GUAY / AFP

Liam's former bandmates – Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik – broke their silence the day after his death with a joint statement shared on the official One Direction social media pages.

The musicians said they were "completely devastated" by the news and said that they "will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly."

All four then went on to share emotional tributes to the Teardrops artist on their personal pages, and Zayn has announced his decision to postpone his upcoming US tour dates – originally due to start on Wednesday – because of the "heartbreaking loss".

Another of Liam's exes, singer Cheryl Cole, condemned the "exploitation" of his passing and expressed her fears about how it would affect their seven-year-old son, Bear.

"What is troubling my spirit the most is that one day, Bear will have access to the abhorrent reports and media exploitation we have seen in the past two days," she wrote. "It is breaking my heart further that I cannot protect him from that in his future."

Liam's current girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, shared a statement on Friday, telling fans she was "at a complete loss" over the tragedy.

"Liam, my angel. You are everything. I want you to know I loved you unconditionally and completely," she wrote.

Kate had been in Argentina with Liam but returned home just a few days before he died. Preliminary autopsy results revealed Liam died of multiple hemorrhages as a result of the fall. It's currently believed he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, though toxicology results are still pending.

Investigators also believe the Brit may have been partially or totally unconscious when he fell.