1D ON WHETHER THEY CONSIDERED ENDING THINGS AFTER ZAYN MALIK QUIT 

It\'s been one hell of a year for One Direction and with fifth album

finally due to be released at the end of the week, they are pretty excited to get it out there and into your earholes.

But there\'s one even more important reason that they\'re so excited this is happening and it comes back to Zayn Malik\'s departure from the band and a brief moment when they wondered what the future might hold for them as a band.

"It was obviously a shock," Niall tells USA Today, when asked about what it was like when Zayn broke the news he was throwing in the towel. At the time, there were "no disagreements, he wasn\'t making any music. We had a few conversations, and then he made his decision."​

"It was kind of a decision made there and then," Louis adds. "I\'m sure he had been thinking about it for a while, but in reality, he wasn\'t happy, and that\'s fine. It was actually a really strong time for all of us, as crazy as that sounds. Of course, it\'s a very traumatic time, in any field of work, when someone loses a member of the team. But it was important that we banded together, and actually, we came out better for that. Our relationship as a four has been so strong since."

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Talking about worries for another album after Zayn\'s departure, Liam said: "That\'s something you can never really wish for or hope for at that stage. You kind of think it\'s going to end there when somebody leaves. But we\'ve definitely grown closer."

Either way, the lads aren\'t holding anything against Zayn and insist that there\'s no bad blood, even after the rather public Twitter spat that took place between Louis and Zayn and Naughty Boy (before they themselves then fell out, RIP Zaughty). 

"We know what happened," Niall says, explaining that they don\'t give two hoots about speculation. "I don\'t think it should be read into too much. Everyone\'s moved on."

While Zayn leaving obviously shook the band, they also said that there\'s was never really a thought about any of the rest of them calling it a day.

Asked if leaving was ever something any of them really considered, Louis said: "No, not really. In reality, there\'s dark days for everyone, where everyone kind of contemplates everything. There\'s a lot of times where you\'ll feel a little down, and you\'re not seeing your friends and family for so long. Then you go onstage at night, and that\'s what motivates you."

And while the guys are keen to keep the door open for 1D in the future, they are seriously looking forward to some time off to do absolutely nothing (read: work on their golf swings and maybe book in a haircut).

"Obviously, we\'re not digging trenches or anything, but ... it\'s been a lot," Harry explains.

True dat, but what do you think? Drop us a tweet to @Sugarscape and let us know, would ya.

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