Brussels, Belgium (CNN) Sebastien Bellin isn't sure how he survived.

"Everything points to where I shouldn't have made it. Everything, from the amount of blood I lost to the legs," he said.

Speaking to CNN from the Brussels hospital where he's recovering, Bellin recounted the harrowing moments after explosions shook the airport in the Belgian capital last week.

Just after hearing the upbeat words of an airline agent telling him to have a nice flight, Bellin says he heard a far more harrowing sound: a bomb exploding nearby.

Bellin is a former U.S. college and Belgian national basketball player. And a photo showing him lying in a pool of blood on the floor of the airport circulated widely online after the attack.

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When the explosion went off, he started to run but found his legs quickly gave way.

"The first thing I remember seeing -- a part of my hip was missing," Bellin said. "It looks like, you know, you punched through something."

A stranger helped save him, propping his legs up on a suitcase to slow his blood loss before paramedics arrived.

He screamed in pain as a man pulled him to safety.

"My leg wasn't following," Bellin said. "I had to reach down. As he's pulling my hand, I was holding my leg."

Outpouring of support

Across the Atlantic hours later, his wife, Sara, turned on her phone and learned the horror from friends' messages.

She saw her husband hadn't messaged her in hours.

"And I saw from another friend, she wrote something eerie like, 'We're here for you if you need us. ... We're thinking of you.' And I'm thinking, 'Why is she writing that? What does that mean?'

People who knew her husband were reaching out.

My ex player Seb Bellin was injured in the Brussels bombing. Going for second surgery. Please pray for Seb. — Greg Kampe (@KampeOU) March 22, 2016

'Why did I make it?'

Months in a wheelchair are ahead for this former athlete -- a tough recovery even to walk again. Yet love is all around.

Family photos, drawings and get-well wishes from his children cover the walls of his hospital room.

His youngest daughter, Bellin says with a smile, wanted to make sure his "booboos were covered with Band-aids."

Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels An injured woman leaves the airport in Brussels, Belgium, after two explosions rocked the facility on Tuesday, March 22. There was also an explosion at a subway station in the city. Hide Caption 1 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Windows are blown out after the deadly attack at the airport. Hide Caption 2 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels A police officer directs passengers in a smoke-filled airport terminal. Hide Caption 3 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Two wounded women are seen in the airport. Hide Caption 4 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels This photo from inside the airport was shared by Jef Versele on Facebook. Hide Caption 5 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Subway passengers walk along the tracks following a blast at the Maelbeek metro station. Hide Caption 6 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels A private security guard helps a wounded woman outside the Maelbeek metro station. Hide Caption 7 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Wounded people are treated outside the subway station. Hide Caption 8 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Rescue teams evacuate the subway station. Hide Caption 9 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Police officers guard the area around the subway station. Hide Caption 10 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels People react as they walk away from the Brussels airport. Hide Caption 11 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels A man with blood stains on his sweater leaves the airport. Hide Caption 12 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Passengers leave the airport after the attack. Hide Caption 13 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels A young girl looks out of the window of a bus after airport evacuations. Hide Caption 14 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels People stand near the airport after evacuations. Hide Caption 15 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Passengers gather outside the airport. Hide Caption 16 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Police officers stand guard near the Maelbeek metro station. Hide Caption 17 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels A police helicopter flies above the area near the subway station. Hide Caption 18 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels People embrace outside the Brussels airport. Hide Caption 19 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels People are led away from the airport after the attacks. Hide Caption 20 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels A victim receives first aid near the Maelbeek metro station. Hide Caption 21 of 22 Photos: Terror attacks in Brussels Ambulances arrive at the airport. Hide Caption 22 of 22

Bellin says he's been weighing bigger questions.

"The point was first, survival. And then after survival was, OK, keeping the leg. And then alright, I feel like if you stay alive and, you know, you don't keep the leg, then at least keep one of them," he said.

And there's one question he's struggling to answer: "Why did I make it?"

In the coordinated bombings at the Brussels airport and a metro station, officials say 35 people were killed

"You don't feel bad. I feel proud that I was able to overcome it," he said. "But why did I overcome it and others didn't?"