Seth Fluery, left, was sentenced to 12 years in prison last week for biting Kayla Hayes' bottom lip off. (Greenville County Detention Center/Kayla Hayes)
A woman whose lip was "completely severed off" her face by an ex-boyfriend detailed in an online post the emotional and physical trauma she faced during the ordeal, and how she thought she was going to die.
Kayla Hayes, 19, recounted on Facebook Thursday the day her ex-boyfriend, 23-year-old Seth Fleury — who was her "worst nightmare" — bit her bottom lip off during an uninvited kiss as she tried to break up with him in October 2017.
WARNING: GRAPHIC PHOTOS
Fleury, as Hayes tried to pull away from him, "bit down on her bottom lip with such force that her lip was amputated," officials said.
Hayes, who said she was 17 at the time while Fleury was 21, said she remembers "every detail of this very moment."
The South Carolina woman said when she saw what her face looked like she joked she "wouldn't have to dress up for Halloween to scare everybody." (Kayla Hayes)
"Sitting in a puddle of my own blood with the majority of my lip laying on my leg, my whole mouth on fire, confused and terrified, I didn’t know how I could ever show my face again," she wrote. "At that point, honestly wishing that those very seconds would just be my last- I wanted to give up for good."
"I then just started screaming at the top of my lungs for help and out of fear for my life. He then yanked me out of my own vehicle and slammed the door in my face so he could take off, and run away from what he had just done. He continued to call me once I made it into the ambulance, which felt like a life time after having something many women hold precious to them, completely mutilated," Hayes continued.
The South Carolina woman said when she saw what her face looked like she joked she "wouldn't have to dress up for Halloween to scare everybody," but said she felt this was her "new reality."
Hayes said she was encouraged not to share details of her life or her happiness online, but that Fleury "has taken enough of my happiness."
SOUTH CAROLINA MAN SENTENCED AFTER HE BIT OFF EX-GIRLFRIEND'S LIP: OFFICIALS
Now, "with a scar wrapping from cheek to cheek," Hayes said she'll continue to "wear my scars as wings" and will remain kind and strong, referring to herself not as a victim, but as a survivor.
Fleury pleaded guilty Thursday to assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. He will not qualify for parole until at least 85 percent of his prison term is completed.
Fox News' Elizabeth Zwirz contributed to this report.
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