Randall Sullivan said he was on his way home from work on January 22 just like any other day.
“I was texting with my wife. She was trying to get suggestions for dinner, because she was down in San Diego for work,” he said.
Sullivan then heard a series of loud pops, but when he first looked, he didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Then he turned back around.
“That’s when I realized the pops were gunshots and then started running away immediately.”
But Sullivan didn’t get far.
“That’s when I saw blood in the pant leg and then I realized I had been shot.”
Sullivan was hit and went down to the ground in front of a coffee shop.
“I looked up and thought I saw someone there, so I just yelled out, 'I've been shot, I've been shot.'”
Inside that shop was Alex Bennett, a former nurse who now lives right above that McDonalds and rushed to help Sullivan. The two reunited Friday for the first time since that night of the shooting.
“You were very worried, you kept saying, 'Am I gonna die?' I don’t blame you," Bennett said. "But I could tell that you weren’t going to die… I felt confident saying you’re not going to die.”
While this was going on, Sullivan was trying to reach his wife.
“He's like, trying to mess with his phone. Okay I can text her for you, let her know what’s going on,” Bennett said.
Bennett kept Sullivan’s wife informed as he was taken to Harborview, where he was treated and released. On Friday, Sullivan offered a heartfelt thank you to Bennett.
“Thank you… and that’s from me and my wife. For just providing a sense of calm and much needed details to my wife who was terrified a thousand miles away. I think that early, kind of settling helped set the tone for that scenario, at least in my head, for the rest of the night. So, thank you so much”
“You’re welcome. I’m really glad that you’re okay,” Bennett said.
Sullivan said there are still two bullet fragments in his leg, although he's not expected to suffer any long term complications.
He also said he's not afraid to go downtown. In fact, he walked the same route home from work on this day — and believes Seattle is still safe.