A gay student from Ohio, who was punched in the face by a stranger for kissing his boyfriend in public, posted a photo of himself with a swollen cheek and an unusual apology to his attacker saying he was sorry the man who punched him was threatened by the fact that he was gay.

Cole Ledford, who attends Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, sent out the tweet Thursday night which has been shared over 27,000 times and favorited over 57,000 times.

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Beneath a picture of his swollen face, Ledford addressed his message “To the guy who punched me tonight for kissing my boyfriend”

“I’m sorry that you called me a fag. I’m sorry you hit me for no reason. I’m sorry whatever insecurities you have don’t allow you to accept others for who they are. I’m sorry I threaten you,” Ledford wrote.

He continued, “I’m NOT sorry I’m gay. I’m proud to be this way. I’m proud to be confident enough to love who I love and to love me. I’m proud to have friends and family that love me regardless of me.”

Ledford concluded, “Honestly, I’m not sorry.”

Ledfords tweet can be seen below:

To the guy who punched me tonight for kissing my boyfriend pic.twitter.com/SMVmTpDCdL — Cole Ledford (@ColeLedford11) November 7, 2014

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On Saturday, Ledford sent out another tweet, this time thanking his boyfriend for “helping me navigate this whole situation and for being such an amazing boyfriend!”

Thank you for helping me navigate this whole situation and for being such an amazing boyfriend! @JeradWilliams2 pic.twitter.com/CR2h8raRiU — Cole Ledford (@ColeLedford11) November 8, 2014