A Kiss To Be Remembered

    During the hustle bustle of Galway night life, a few friends and I decided to go for a drink at our local, Neacthain's pub. We all sat and drank our pints to merry content as we told the stories of our rather monotonous lives thinking they were hilarious to our fake laughter. Half way through this conversation my friend Damian offered me a cigarette in joining him for a smoke, I obliged.

    So off we went outside and smoked watching people rush us by eagerly to get to the pub boxes for drinks and what not and as we watched we noticed one of the city's socially dysfunctional people walking by across the road. Now don't get me wrong, I feel sorry for this guy because he's the more severe of the mentally ill people wandering the streets of Galway, but from one of my previous excursions outside Neachtain's I saw him hit a woman across the back of the head because she did not have a lighter to give.

"He actually kinda looks like House, but even more angry. And even more psychotic."

    So naturally I was afraid of his presence because he constantly shouts loudly and violently at passerbys in threatening tones. The trick with him is to avoid eye contact. Much to my dismay I had accidently made eye contact with him at this very moment in time. I quickly turned my head nearly giving myself whiplash and looked at Damian saying "Oh God he just saw me looking at him" to which Damian kindly replied "Yes Seán, he's coming over now". Afraid to turn around I just ignored the unfolding event hoping the man would veer as violently as he talks to people to the left or right. Neither happened.

    I turned around to be greeted to his face practically in mine. He held his hand out waggling his fingers like a piano player with arthritis. I was afraid so I shook his hand hoping he would leave. He shouted in my face with a positive comment, not a bad one, to which I didn't fully understand and then asked for a cigarette. I calmly replied while shaking nervously "I'm sorry bud, this is my last one" to which he brushed me off (with an exhale of relief on my behalf) and turned to Damian. "I'm sorry bud, I got this off a friend inside" said the Damian. And then the man got angry. So Damian, out of the well being of not getting smacked in the face offered the man the rest of his cigarette.

    A hilarious hen party broke out inside of my nerves as I thought this was the end of the situation. But no, much to my dismay the man leaned over and gave me a hug with his arm, resembling more of a headlock than anything, and kissed me on the neck whispering "Thank you". I presume he was trying to thank Damian whom quickly went inside straight after this. I WAS following suite until the man stopped me wriggling his fingers at me yet again. Scared and confused I went to shake his hand again, was this the beginning of a new relationship? No. He was not pleased I tried to shake his hand, instead he violently shuddered towards the cigarette still in my hand. Naturally I obliged and he took it now holding two cigarettes, one in each hand. I then made somewhat of a a dash to the door which was only a meter away at this point when he grabbed me yet again and nudged me in the ribs and screamed in my face,

"Don't die".

"My Reaction"

I didn't. But the look on his face almost led me to believe that I was about to. I made it back inside to warmth and safety a millisecond later. The lads laughed, I nearly cried and we all pretty much went home.

And that, my friends, is the most action I've had in a while. And it's a kiss I will remember for days, weeks, hell even YEARS to come.

Until next time, BYEILOVEYOU!