ORLANDO, Fla. – A survivor of the Orlando nightclub massacre has spent the past year trying to honor the life of his best friend, who was among the 49 people killed in last year's Pulse shooting.
"Your only options are to hide or to run away," Brandon Wolf said as he recalled the June 12, 2016, shooting that killed his best friend.
"I didn't see anything. I didn't want to see anything," Wolf continued. "I just stared straight ahead at an open door."
Wolf said he'll never forget when the second round of shooting started.
"The smell of gun smoke, which is very, I think, distinctive, it almost burns your nose," he said.
Wolf, 28, escaped uninjured, but he's spent the last year trying to keep the memory of his best friend alive.
Andrew Leinonen was only 32 when he was killed.
"He said the thing we never say enough is that we love each other," Wolf said.
That's why Wolf and his friend decided to start the Dru Project, an LGBTQ organization that is now on a mission to spread love across the nation.
"There are people out there who are absolutely terrified that something like this is going to happen," Wolf said. "So I feel an obligation as a survivor."
Wolf said the hurt still remains one year later, but he knows that love will conquer hate.
"There's more love in the world than hatred, and I'm hoping that when he looks down, he sees that and he's inspired by that," Wolf said.
