APEX, N.C. — A UNC-Charlotte student seriously injured in the shooting last month is back at home and sharing his story. Drew Pescaro returned home to Apex four days ago.
"It's taking a while to realize I went through all that," Pescaro said.
Thursday will mark one month since Pescaro was shot.
"Pretty much right when he got in the classroom hearing that first shot and realizing okay this is actually happening right now. Pretty instantly I felt myself get hit," he said.
The college sophomore had been shot in the back. The bullet went through his stomach.
But Pescaro admits he was lucky. Two other students in the UNC-Charlotte classroom didn't survive -- Ellis Parlier, 19, and Riley Howell, 21. Pescaro was among the four students injured.
"Eventually it was just down to I was on the ground, the other two kids that were shot and didn't make it was on the ground, and the shooter himself was on the ground as well," Pescaro said.
Police arrived quickly. He said an officer and ROTC student helped carry him out and drove him to the hospital. Their staff called his mom to tell her what had happened.
"I know it was a difficult conversation that my mom had to have with the nurse when she called him or called her at first but those families had a completely different, you know a lot worse than we did. So that weighs on me a lot," Pescaro said.
Pescaro said he plans to return to UNC-Charlotte in the fall.
"If you know transferred somewhere else that's in one way letting the kid who did this win," Pescaro said.
His younger brother will be there with him. Pescaro is also grateful for all the support he's received. From his parents and longtime girlfriend who was always at his bedside. To his fellow students, teachers and coaches past and present to the total strangers who reached out.
In his hospital room, a poster people signed during a vigil at UNC-Charlotte the day after the shooting.
"It's been everything. That's the reason why. Everyone is always like oh you seem so positive through such a hard time and its 99 percent because of all the support I've gotten," Pescaro said.
He'll be back at the hospital next week and is hoping that will be the end of his physical recovery. He said dealing with what he heard and saw that day will take longer.