Jalesya Corbett knew it would be difficult to get to work when she opted to take a job that was much farther away from home than she had intended. She had no idea at the time that her commute to work would end up transforming her life — all because of a fortuitous interaction along the way.
Jalesya Corbett was strolling down the shoulder of one of the town’s main roadways. She was on her way to the office, and she would characterize this morning as one of the most unpleasant work commutes she had ever experienced.
Because she left at the ridiculously early hour of 3 a.m., it was generally dark during her commute. However, the rainfall was beating down on the street today, and her modest umbrella did not appear to be keeping her dry. It made her feel a little uncomfortable because of the dark gloominess of it all. She then became aware of headlights. Someone was approaching her from behind. When Corbett went for her early morning walks, she always attempted to be aware of the events. Her gaze was drawn behind her as she became aware of a weird light coming.
She started looking around and discovered she was alone. Except for her and this strange car, no one else was visible.
Corbett was half intrigued, half concerned, and wished the car had slowed just enough to avoid spraying her with water. She soon learned, however, that this was not the case. As the vehicle approached her, she quickened her pace. Corbett couldn’t tell who was inside because he couldn’t see them. She had no idea how much that chauffeur was about to transform her life. It was difficult to tell who was pulling up alongside Corbett due to the torrential rain.
However, as the car got nearer, it became evident at least what was driving alongside her. It was clear that the car was a p-olice vehicle. But why is that? She hadn’t br-oken any laws, as far as she could discern. The truth was that the officer inside had previously en-countered Corbett and was familiar with her narrative. Sgt. Scott Bass, as she would later learn, decided to interfere that morning. What he didn’t realize was how rapidly things would spiral out of control as a result of this decision.
While the walk in the rain and cold this morning was particularly unpleasant, Corbett was used to mornings like this. Her daily routine consisted of walking six miles to work, working an eight-hour shift at her neighborhood Bojangles chicken and biscuit restaurant, then walking six miles home. She revealed how she ended up in this situation in an interview. “I applied to numerous Bojangles, and the one that was the furthest away from my house phoned first, so I said, ‘OK, I’ll work here and walk because I have no other means to get out there.” It had become her usual, yet that morning was anything from regular.
Corbett had no other way to get to work and had no choice but to walk, even if it meant arriving at work in the middle of a downpour. She would not allow the weather alter her sense of purpose. “I still walk,” she said in an interview. “How else will I be able to pay my bills?”
The Bojangles’ employee realized she wouldn’t be able to avoid the officer approaching from behind. She was nervously struggling to sort out if she was doing anything unusual that would catch the attention of an officer.
Corbett, on the other hand, couldn’t come up with an explanation and chose to come up with one herself. She walked up to the p-olice car. As he pulled down his window, Corbett approached the officer with ambivalence. “Could I assist you, Officer?” she inquired. As soon as Sgt. Bass smiled at her, she felt a little more at ease. He noticed the woman shivering in the weather and inquired if she would like a ride.
“I answered, ‘Yeah, I could use a ride,'” says the narrator in an interview. Even though it meant an unpleasant journey in a p-olice car, she was grateful for the protection from the storm. She walked inside and closed the door nervously. She had no idea that her choice would eventually be the focus of national attention. No one had ever volunteered Corbett a ride to work during her time at Bojangles. She was relieved to have some time to dry off on her way to work, but she was hesitant to put her confidence in the law enforcement officer.
Corbett and Sgt. Bass were both silent for the duration of the car ride, except for inquiring where she worked. Corbett’s mind wandered amid the silence. She had just hopped into a car with a random man in the dark of night during a downpour, whether she was a officer or not. Could she have created a better opening scene for a horror film? Sgt. Bass revealed what led to his spontaneous carpooling that morning in an interview a few months later. “I was approaching the completion of my shift when I noticed her depart the city side of town and enter the county side,” he explained.
“I kept an eye on her because it was pouring and chilly, and she told me she was heading to work, and I gave her a lift because she had quite a few miles still to go,” he explained. He rationalized that it was all in a day’s job. But this was only the beginning of the story for the two. Corbett’s commute, which usually took him two hours, was reduced to a few minutes in the vehicle. Corbett turned to Sgt. Bass as they approached the Bojangles restaurant and thanked him once more for the ride. Sgt. Bass, on the other hand, felt he hadn’t done enough for the woman he’d just met.
Despite the fact that it was not part of his job description, Sgt. Bass found himself offering Corbett rides more regularly, especially when the weather was exceptionally h-arsh. Corbett was swept away by the act of charity, and she reluctantly accepted the offer, even though she thought it was far too generous. But, as it turned out, he wouldn’t be able to give Corbett a ride for much longer. The uplifting message and story behind the Nash County Sheriff Office’s social media post seems to swiftly catch on in a world of gloomy news.
The story of a officer, a Bojangles employee, and a bike had suddenly become the buzz of the town. They had no idea that a whole new phase was going to be introduced to their story.
The post received tons of comments and likes in a short period of time. People from all over the world began sharing the post with their friends, even if they didn’t live in Nash County. Everyone seemed to be chatting about the touching story. However, the media attention had only just begun. Over the course of the next few days, the story of the unexpected pair of friends drew even more attention. People shared the tale on social media, prompting their friends to share it with their circles, and so on, until the word had spread across the country.
Sgt. Bass and Sgt. Corbett were contacted by local news outlets for appearances, and they participated in a number of them. They were both surprised that others seemed to care so much about what had transpired, and they were glad to share their unexpected experience.