Last Tuesday evening, Reddit user IzzyBlue was hanging out at the beach with her boyfriend in Palm Beach, Fla. It was around 9:45 PM when the couple decided to sit right by the shore, directly underneath a giant spotlight, to watch the waves. At that hour, the touristy and bustling beach was practically desolate. It was an unusually calm and serene night.

“It was very peaceful. My boyfriend and I were just collecting shells and talking,” IzzyBlue tells Upvoted.

Out of nowhere, the user (who requests we keep her full name anonymous) heard what she thought was a firecracker directly behind her, which wasn’t cause for alarm since it was just a few days before New Year’s Eve, after all.

The 22-year-old never suspected that the sound of fireworks were actually gun shots, since, according to the user, the affluent neighborhood hadn’t reported a shooting in nearly a decade.

Shortly thereafter, IzzyBlue heard a second pop and then a third one. By the time the fourth bullet struck her, she didn’t hear anything at all. In fact, it was eerily silent.

Those who live close to scene say they heard gunshots around 9:45 last night on Palm Beach. pic.twitter.com/tl4DyNxa9M — Katie Johnson (@Katie_Johnson_) December 30, 2015

“I would’ve expected a whizzing or something, but, nope. My boyfriend was sitting right by me, and he didn’t hear it either,” IzzyBlue recounts in a chilling Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) session she held earlier this week about the incident.

It took her a few seconds to realize what had happened and then she felt the sensation of “hot liquid metal flying across her head.” The bullet grazed her scalp, pulling chunks of skin and hair off her head. If she was sitting up higher, the bullet would have directly hit her brain.

IzzyBlue explains:

“When the blood started pouring down my face, I knew I had been shot. The physical pain wasn’t the worst part—after a minute or so the blood had filled my eyes, and I was completely blinded. “Everything was white, and I remember thinking, maybe this was dying, maybe everything just goes white. Or maybe there was a bullet lodged in a part of my brain that helps me see, and I might go blind forever…”

The user describes being shot as a dull, burning feeling. She said it was like being “punched by hot metal.” For IzzyBlue, the experience was more psychologically traumatic than physically painful. In fact, on a scale of one to ten, with ten being the most painful, the user describes it as a four.

According to IzzyBlue, the wound wasn’t large—”no bigger than what you would get from cracking your head too hard on table corner”—still, a fountain of blood poured from it.

“Dude, so much blood,” she says. Blood had completely covered her entire head, face, chest and boyfriend’s arms. “You would’ve thought my skull was split and I was spilling my life force everywhere.”

Naturally, the gruesome sight shocked her boyfriend. At first, he froze out of fear and confusion. After a couple of minutes, he snapped out of it, dialing 911 and instinctively jumping in front of IzzyBlue to shield her from any possible flying bullets.

Within three minutes, the police arrived on the scene. By the time they came, blood had cleared from IzzyBlue’s eyes and she was able to see again.

“I never imagined getting blood in your eyes would make you see white, especially at night. It was so strange and surreal. I remember even asking the ambulance crew if I was going to die, and they said no, it seemed to be just a surface wound—I couldn’t believe them. I thought maybe that’s what they were supposed to tell people to keep them calm,” she explains.

#PalmBeach PD still on scene of "random shooting" investigation off Brazilian. Not releasing much info right now. pic.twitter.com/zI6jhzdDCK — Katie Johnson (@Katie_Johnson_) December 30, 2015

Luckily for IzzyBlue, her injuries were not life-threatening and she was released shortly after she went to the hospital. She had eight stitches placed on her head. IzzyBlue didn’t have insurance, but the detective gave her the number of an organization that waives or reduces medical bills for victims of violent crime.

According to IzzyBlue, witnesses observed the shooter speeding away in a car. He is still at large. As far as his motivations? According to police reports, it was probably a random stray bullet rather than a premeditated attack.

“We have a very viable suspect. There appears to be no connection between the suspect and victim. There’s no threat to the community. We’re trying to put together a solid case,” Sergeant Michelle Pagan of the Palm Beach Police Department tells Upvoted.

IzzyBlue doesn’t believe the shooter meant to harm her:

“I am only guessing he was aiming at the sign, because there were holes in it, and, we were in plain sight. I feel like if he were actually aiming at us, then he would have been able to hit us quite easily, and, we weren’t directly behind the sign, so I don’t imagine he would have hit the sign. It just seems as if he had a lapse in judgement. It gives me the chills to consider someone might want the thrill of killing someone innocent in cold blood”

Detectives seem to be re-creating bullet trajectory from last night. One went thru lifeguard sign. pic.twitter.com/ecWYoqvF3R — Katie Johnson (@Katie_Johnson_) December 30, 2015

She continues: “Like I’ve said, this was a product of stupidity or sociopathic behavior, neither of which I can hold a grudge against.”

The incident didn’t change her views on guns, either. Before the incident, the user wasn’t pro-gun, nor was she against the ownership of guns. IzzyBlue explains her views in the AMA:

“I believe people should hunt and be able to protect themselves, but maybe we should be smarter about who is allowed to do that with guns. “I feel like it’s a bit too lax here in America, but I would say I felt about the same before getting shot. “If I had my way, EVERY gun would require a gun license. You’d have to study for it, and prove you knew how to use one, just like with a car. And, if you had a history of violence, you’d have your gun license suspended. That goes for ANY kind of violence. I simply wish that we were less apt to put guns in the hands of crazy people. I don’t think that’s too much to ask…”

After her near-death experience, IzzyBlue suffers from debilitating headaches as a consequence, and, possibly, PTSD.

“I’m not sure what exactly describes PTSD, as I have never studied it—but I will say I have been reliving the experience vividly, a few times daily. It causes me great anxiety,” she says.

Still, IzzyBlue views every single day as a gift.

“If I could speak to my shooter, I would simply tell him, that I forgave him. And I hope that his mistake taught him to be more aware of safety with a killing machine,” IzzyBlue says. “And that I appreciated the gift he has given me, of complete gratefulness for how precious my life is—like I have never felt before.”