Junior Alex Lee went to work like he had for months and did his job.

Then he became famous for it.

After a seemingly normal shift, he went home to find that hundreds of thousands of people followed him on Twitter. The next day at school, students in the hallway–that he’d never seen before–were calling his name with smiles on their faces and asking to take a picture with them.

“Good Morning America,” “Ellen DeGeneres,” and several other news stations across the country wanted to meet him. His life quickly changed.

Alex became a trending internet sensation known as #AlexFromTarget on Nov. 2, when his picture was taken unknowingly at work and went viral on Twitter.

“It was really exciting because I got to meet Ellen,” Alex said. “The pressure was overwhelming; I had such a big audience, and I didn’t know what to say.”

During his shift on Nov. 2, Alex’s manager at Target showed him his picture on Twitter, which had 20,000 retweets in just a few hours. Alex went from 144 followers on his personal account to 750,000 followers in a matter of days.

“There’s a big audience,” Alex said. “We kept it in control. My stepdad, my mom, this guy named John and I managed my tweets.”

Through Justin Bieber on Twitter, Alex and his family were introduced to Shots CEO John Shahidi (a photo sharing app), whose advising with fame and business endeavors has helped Alex realize his potential.

“I hope that he keeps this going,” Alex said. “Not just 15 minutes of fame, but hopefully for a couple years. Right now I have a platform; I just need to use it.”

Alex’s parents, Marci and Eric Fooks, were taken back by how quickly Alex became known.

“We were kind of surprised that it was happening, especially with the scope that it was happening,” Mr. Fooks said. “We were familiar with social media and had concerns with the pace of it. We were making sure that it was positive and safe for Alex.”

The junior wants to use his recognition to make a difference in kids’ lives who have been bullied although he does not have any concrete plans yet.

“Anti-bullying is a really big deal,” Alex said. “I want to encourage them and make them feel like they’re important.”

Alex and girlfriend Lindsey Diers have been bullied on social media at the height of his popularity. People have threatened to physically harm them.

“You have to take them somewhat serious, but a lot of people tend to say things they don’t mean because they can hide behind a computer screen,” Mr. Fooks said.

Because of the threats and recognition, Alex has limited his time in public.

“We are very selective with when we go and where we go,” Mrs. Fooks said. “He likes to have a parent with him (at all times).”

Alex’s parents’ personal information such as Social Security numbers, phone numbers and credit card information were stolen and leaked onto Twitter in the following weeks of Alex’s rise to fame.

“It was scary, but we handled it very well,” Alex said. “We contacted John, and he got our information off of Twitter.”

Alex does leave the house in his free time, but not without constant bombardment from girls wanting a photo.

“It’s annoying; I’m afraid to go out in public,” Alex said. “I want to be able to go out with Lindsey without people asking for pictures.”

Lindsey tries not to let the attention Alex receives affect her.

“I’m not really a jealous person,” Lindsey said. “He’s still Alex; he’s a normal person.”

Alex’s parents believe that he has handled his fame well and has the potential to remain in the public eye for a long time.

“We don’t feel this could have happened to a better kid,” Mr. Fooks said. “He has the positivity, the charisma and the personality to do it.”

According to Alex, people who know only his face and his name have misunderstood his character.

“A lot of people think that I’m cocky and arrogant,” Alex said. “They say that I don’t deserve to have this happen to me. I didn’t ask for this; it just happened.”