Liam Payne Responds To Rumors He & Cheryl Cole Split: "We Have Our Struggles"

Why is it that I get so panicked when I hear about trouble in celebrity relationships? It's the same feeling I get when I think about how Free Willy isn't actually based on a true story about a whale and a young boy's unlikely friendship. I get all, "But, but, but... NO!" That's how I feel hearing these breakup rumors about singer Liam Payne and his girlfriend, Cheryl Cole. Fans have been asking if Liam Payne and Cheryl Cole broke up after rumors began circulating the two were having issues. Now, Payne is clearing some of the air.

The famous duo welcomed their son, Bear, in the summer of 2017. At the time, all seemed to be hunky-dory. Payne, 24, and Cole, 34, have been together for roughly two years and fans have been loving the unexpected pair. However, despite both of their wildly successful careers and growing family, even these two aren't immune to the regular ups and downs of relationship drama.

Payne recently sat down with Evening Standard to talk everything romance.

The gist? It's complicated. He told interviewers,

The funniest thing was a week before we were getting married. The next week we’re splitting up. And the thing for me is, I just like to think we’re somewhere in the middle.

He admitted that they, like everyone, have come across bumps in the road. But for Payne, family must come first. He said,

You know, we have our struggles — like, of course I’m not gonna sit here and say that everything’s absolutely fine and dandy, because of course you go through different things, and that’s what a relationship is. But we go through them together as a family and that’s the most important thing for me.

Payne noticeably has a realistic approach to relationships, particularly ones in the spotlight. Despite his young age, he has a very matter of fact attitude toward making a serious partnership work. He told ES,

This part of our relationship was never not going to happen. There was always going to be a little bit of tenseness in the way we sort ourselves out, but tell me a relationship in the world that doesn’t go through a spot like that? It’s about whether you make it through or not, together, is the main point there I guess.

Payne also expressed gratitude for Cole and her capacity to accept his lifestyle. Considering Cole is a famous singer herself, the two have an unspoken understanding about how things work in their celebrity courtship. He said,

[I’m] very fortunate that I partnered up with someone who’s … very understanding with what I do. Because I don’t think anybody else could take it.

He added,

It’s difficult, obviously: having someone else who’s so high-profile in the media pushes everything that I do to another level, and I think it’s weird. I feel like the press are more obsessed with it than the nation are, which is quite funny. It is about making it work for us, not making it work how people think it should work.

Preach, Liam.

As for Bear, Payne and Cole have made the conscious decision to keep him away from the press and limelight as much as possible... for now. Payne said,

Rather than being pictured and being put in places, I wanna give him the chance [of a life outside of the public eye]. If I take it away from him now, he never has the chance to go back.

Ugh, Cheryl, Liam. I am rooting for you guys! You and your beautiful baby and your beautiful tattoos deserve all the happiness. Good luck out there.

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