HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- Alex Curtis was watching the aftermath of the deadly school shooting in Chardon, Ohio, unfold on a computer screen.

"I can't believe I used to go to this school," Alex said. "It's surreal."

The good thing about it for Alex, 17, is that he has distance and time on his side; they're buffers. Alex was childhood friends with many of those involved in the shootings, but he left Chardon several years ago.

One of the victims, Russell King, was his neighbor and best friend.

"At one time, growing up, we were really good friends, hanging out," Alex says. "I can't even imagine what it's like for his family and everything."

T.J. Lane is the 17-year-old suspect who surrendered to police Monday morning. As of Tuesday night, three people had died.

T.J. was also Alex's childhood friend. Alex is left struggling to answer the question, "Why?"

"This is a very important time for T.J.'s life," Alex says. "No one was there for him, and he snapped. He either wanted to be remembered as a killer or he didn't think about it and now. That's what T.J. Lane will be forever remembered as."