To whomever is reading this, I regret to inform you that Zayn Malik — the one that sings all of those crazy high notes — has left One Direction. This was released by a Facebook status on the band’s official profile. They then tweeted the link on their official twitter account, causing hysteria among all fans of the band, myself included.

In case you have been living under a rock for the past five years, One Direction is the biggest band of this generation. Platinum record after platinum record, world tour after world tour, etc. They have made millions of young girls and boys happy and have grown up with them over the past half decade. The five members, Louis, Liam, Zayn, Harry, and Niall, have all been a safety blanket of sorts to their fans. They are always there for their fans — not physically, but through social media and, most importantly, through their music.

Now, I’m sure you’re all wondering, what does this mean for the band? What about the world tour they’re on? What about their millions of screaming fans awaiting all FIVE of them to get to them? Here’s what I know. In the Facebook status, One Direction’s management stressed that the boys will continue as a “four piece” for the rest of the tour. The fifth album is still set to be released later this year. So all is well! Right? WRONG! The five boys have been best friends and, basically, their only travel companions for the past five years. But now, one is gone. Try watching this heart-wrenching vine of the four remaining boys completely skipping Zayn’s part in “You & I” and try not to cry. Can’t do it, can you? Exactly. Heart-wrenching.

And what about Zayn? Why did he leave in the first place? Well, lucky you, I have spent too many years following the whereabouts and lives of One Direction, so I’m pretty much an expert. Zayn has always been very distant and “mysterious,” never saying much. But recently he had become more and more reclusive and absent, even taking a leave from the band before the actual announcement of his departure. Rumor has it that Zayn is depressed and that that’s one of the major reasons for him leaving. It would not be a surprise since he has been working nonstop, with no more than three months off at a time for the past five years.

He also was recently caught in a cheating scandal earlier this week, causing his girlfriend of several years, Perrie Edwards of the girl band Little Mix, to obviously be quite unhappy.  This is obviously not an easy time for him if he was willing to pay $18 million dollars to get out of his contract with Modest! Management just to get away from the stress of the spotlight. My thoughts and prayers are with you, Zayn, my beautiful, little cupcake man.

No matter who you are or how you feel about One Direction, don’t give anyone crap for crying or just being upset about Zayn leaving. Be kind. Yes, it may be slightly comical watching your younger sister bawl her eyes out while pouring milk into her cereal bowl, but she’s going through a lot right now. Don’t tease her until several months down the road. And, please, for the love of God, don’t pull out the sexuality card if you see a boy in your school library trying not to cry as he wears his One Direction shirt proudly. 

Losing Zayn from the band is obviously not the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. I can give at least five examples of harder things I have had to do: taking Honors Biology II, saying goodbye to my dog before she got put down, watching my best friend cry at his father’s funeral, going through my parents’ divorce, taking care of my twin brother with autism and everything that comes with it. I know that the world is not over because a boy band lost a member. But all of those aforementioned things became slightly more bearable with their music and existence to support me.

Every little thing in life became better because they were always there. When everyone else left and everything changed, they always stayed the same. They were always there. What exactly am I expected to do now that I do not have that security anymore? Now that the one thing that gave me and millions of people strength and happiness is slowly deteriorating before my eyes? I’ll tell you what I’m going to do. Soldier on. Because if these five amazing boys — the only One Direction there will ever be — have taught me anything, it’s to never give up. With that, thank you, One Direction. You have forever changed me for the better.