'They thought he wasn't making it': B.C. soccer star's family on his shocking shooting — and remarkable recovery

Born and raised in Metro Vancouver, Nathan Demian was living his dream playing soccer for top-ranked Ohio State University, when he was shot during a post-game pizza run with his brother Saturday night.

“I didn’t actually see the cars, but from what I heard, there was two cars and they were shooting at each other,” said Nathan’s brother Joel, who also plays university soccer in the U.S.

“He caught a stray bullet. It was nothing to do with us.”

As Nathan was rushed to hospital with a bullet wound to his abdomen, word spread to his extended family, including his sister and mother in B.C., who are both family doctors.

“Instantly, my whole body was in tremors," said Nathan's sister Anna Demian.

"My mom and I just fell to the ground, and, you know, your knees give out, and you have nothing left to hold on to."

“They were going to call a code; they thought he wasn't making it," said Nathan's mother Ruth Demian.

"And all they could do was keep him alive, that was the first word we got from the surgeon.”

As his Canadian family rushed to Columbus to be by his side, the 22-year-old fought for his life.

“There was just no hesitation. We’ve got to be there. This is not Nathan's battle alone, this is all our battles,” said Ruth.

“Really, my only hope at that time was to, you know, hold his hand again,” said his brother Daniel Demian, who drove 6.5 hours from Toronto hoping Nathan would still be alive when he arrived in Columbus.

After nearly dying on the operating table, Nathan has made remarkable progress.

“He’s far surpassed what we ever imagined, from being alive to recovering, to what we thought was going to be four surgeries ending up to be just one surgery and completing it all,” said Anna.

“He’s a strong kid, and all the doctors have said he's going to make a really, really fast recovery,” added Joel.

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Nathan, who got his start with the Vancouver Whitecaps academy youth program and played internationally on Canada’s U-15 and U-17 teams, hopes he isn’t sidelined from Ohio State for long.

“He’s got one thing on his mind, and it's about the finals. His team is about to go to the final four and then hopefully the national championship. And that's all he can think about,” said Daniel.

“Even when he was in ICU intubated, he was writing: Is there any way you can get me to the final four? That was his dream. So he didn't quite make it there. But they're all going to wear their badges with his number 3 on them, so that in some way, he’s there,” said Ruth.

As soon as he’s well enough, Demian will return to Langley to continue his recovery with family.

“We did ask Nathan what he wants to communicate to people, and he wants to say thank you to God, and thank you to his family and friends, thank you to his coaches and teammates and all those that have carried him,” said Anna.

“There's really nothing holding him back,” said Daniel. “He kind of surpassed expectations every step of the way and we're hoping that continues in that, and anything he wants to do, he can do.”