Anthony heard the shots first, and then he hid.

“I was up by the front of the building, so I pretty much heard it first, along with everyone else that was up by the door. And after that, I don’t know what happened, because I just hid,” he told a room full of reporters at Penrose Hospital Tuesday afternoon.

5 victims in Club Q mass shooting identified, as mourning continues around Colorado Springs

Anthony, who declined to give his last name, was one of 18 people injured in a mass shooting that erupted late Saturday night, just before midnight, at Club Q, a popular LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs. Five others were killed in the violence.

With his spouse Jeremy’s hand on his shoulder Anthony, sometimes tearfully, recounted the chaotic moments when the shooting broke out.

He had gone to Club Q Saturday night by himself, he said. For Anthony, it was a safe space, a place of found family where he felt accepted in a city he said he never quite felt “100% safe and comfortable” in.

Anthony and Jeremy moved to Colorado Springs from Denver about 5½ years ago, he said. It was where Jeremy grew up, and Anthony wanted a change, he said.

Club Q shooting survivor smiles through tragedy: ‘I’m happy to be alive’

But in Colorado Springs, he said, they’ve experienced ridicule for simply being who they are.

“That was always one of my mom’s biggest worries, about being gay and going out and not having somewhere to go. But when I was welcomed into Club Q by a bunch of people, I knew I had a home. I had a safe place. They made sure everyone knew that it was a safe place,” Anthony said.

But now, that sense of safety has been corrupted, he said.

“For me, personally, I will be uncomfortable going anywhere for a long time. … I don’t feel safe being around or with strangers.”

Before a lone gunman entered the club and began shooting with a long rifle, as Colorado Springs police reported, Anthony said patrons at the club were simply enjoying themselves.

“Everybody was having fun. Music was playing. Everyone was talking and dancing,” he said.

Anthony said he never saw the shooter and he doesn’t recall how many gunshots rang out, but he fell, he said. He wouldn’t know until after he arrived at the hospital, but he’d sustained injuries from shrapnel in his arm and buttocks.

He crawled from his position on the floor into a corner up against a nearby wall, he said.

“I just went up in a corner, just out of the way, because I didn’t want to be in the middle of the floor,” he said.

And then there was silence.

“When I was hiding, I heard nothing,” Anthony said. “I don’t know how quickly or where they took the gunman down. Nonetheless, I had panic, fear. I wasn’t trying to pay attention to anyone around me; (I was just) trying to focus on me.”

Two people, Thomas James and Richard Fierro, are being hailed as heroes for subduing the shooter inside the club.

“The individuals who took the suspect down – you’re my heroes,” Anthony said.

Both Anthony and Jeremy said they never thought something like this would happen.

“It’s not something you think about, going about your day, or having to worry about,” Jeremy said. “So (the shooting) has completely shifted that. … It changes your reality.”

In the aftermath of the shooting ,Anthony said he was able to call Jeremy, who was at home.

“I told him there was a shooting, I’ve been involved and I’m OK,” said Anthony, who also thanked the first responders and hospital staff.

Jeremy was at the hospital before Anthony was – a welcome sight when he arrived, Anthony said.

“As I was lying there in the club, I didn’t know if I’d ever get to hug him again. I didn’t know how extensive my wounds were. I didn’t know what had happened to me,” he said.

Anthony said Tuesday he hopes the shooter “gets the justice he deserves.”

“Why don’t you meet somebody and get to know their true heart before passing judgment? He really did harm a lot of pure, true hearts. I don’t know if it will be the same,” Anthony said as he held Jeremy’s hand over his shoulder.

Public defender records identify Club Q shooting suspect as nonbinary; virtual court appearance set for Wednesday

Jeremy said the community must remain united moving forward.

“The most important part of this is … standing united and fighting for what you believe in. If you love somebody, you have the right to hold their hand. You have a right to kiss them in public if you want to. The more we do that … the more we recognize that we’re all human beings, and we all stand together. That’s really where the focus should be. Not who it’s with,” he said.

Anthony said despite the tragedy, the LGBTQ+ community is resilient.

“We may be hurt, broken and down right now, but we will be strong again,” he said.

Patrick Sharp, CEO of Penrose-St. Francis, said Tuesday afternoon his hospitals were still caring for three patients in stable condition, including Anthony.

UCHealth Memorial Hospital Central said in an email just before 8:30 a.m. Tuesday it was still caring for 10 patients who were injured in the incident.