Fluent Fiction - Serbian: Serenade Gone Awry: A Tale of Mirth & Music
Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:
fluentfiction.org/serenade-gone-awry-a-tale-of-mirth-music

Story Transcript:

Sr: Sunce se polako spuštalo iza krošnji starih hrastova, a sjaj dana lagano je nestajao u sumraku.
En: The sun was slowly setting behind the branches of old oak trees, and the daylight was gently fading into dusk.

Sr: U malenom selu u srcu Srbije, Marko, Aleksandra i Milena nalazili su se u starom, drvorezu ukrašenom kafanskom dvorištu.
En: In a small village in the heart of Serbia, Marko, Aleksandra, and Milena found themselves in an old, wood-carved adorned courtyard.

Sr: Marko, visok i šarmantan momak sa sjajem u očima, imao je poseban cilj te večeri.
En: Marko, a tall and charming young man with a sparkle in his eyes, had a special goal that evening.

Sr: Muzika je već pulsirala kroz prostoriju dok su se ljudi okupljali, razgovarajući i smejući se uz hladno piće i dim cigareta.
En: Music was already pulsating through the room as people gathered, chatting and laughing over cold drinks and cigarette smoke.

Sr: Tradicionalne srpske pesme dolazile su jedna za drugom, a energija se lagano podizala.
En: Traditional Serbian songs followed one after another, and the energy slowly rose.

Sr: Aleksandra, prelepa i nasmejana, sedela je s prijateljicom Milenom, slušajući priče starosedeoca i davala svoj puni doprinos živopisnom razgovoru.
En: Aleksandra, beautiful and smiling, sat with her friend Milena, listening to the stories of the locals and contributing to the lively conversation.

Sr: Marko je posmatrao Aleksandru, razmišljajući kako bi mogao ostaviti utisak na nju.
En: Marko watched Aleksandra, thinking about how he could leave an impression on her.

Sr: Kao iz vedra neba, Marko je skupio hrabrost i ustao.
En: Out of the blue, Marko gathered his courage and stood up.

Sr: Odeća mu je bila uredna, a u njegovim očima se videla odlučnost.
En: His clothes were neat and his eyes showed determination.

Sr: Prinuđen nepobedivom željom da impresionira Aleksandru, on je zatražio mikrofon od tamburaša.
En: Driven by an unstoppable desire to impress Aleksandra, he asked for the microphone from the tamburitza player.

Sr: Kada je nastupio njegov trenutak, srce mu je treslo.
En: When his moment came, his heart was pounding.

Sr: Započeo je pesmu, čvrstim glasom koji se razlegao kafanom.
En: He started to sing, with a strong voice echoing through the tavern.

Sr: Na početku je sve izgledalo dobro.
En: At first, everything seemed fine.

Sr: Međutim, kako je pesma odmicala, Marko je postajao sve nervozniji.
En: However, as the song progressed, Marko became increasingly nervous.

Sr: U jednom trenutku, zaboravio je stih, a onda i ceo melodiju.
En: At one point, he forgot a verse, and then the entire melody.

Sr: Aleksandra i Milena su prvo gledale u čudu, a zatim su se nesmotreno nasmejale.
En: Aleksandra and Milena first looked in astonishment, and then inadvertently burst into laughter.

Sr: Kafana se ispunila smehom, a Marko, crven u licu, shvatio je da mu ne ide baš najbolje.
En: The tavern filled with laughter, and Marko, red-faced, realized that things weren't going so well.

Sr: Ali, umesto da odustane, Marko je zastao, udahnuo duboko i nasmešio se.
En: But instead of giving up, Marko paused, took a deep breath, and smiled.

Sr: Onda je počeo s novom, improvizovanom melodijom, smelo plešući unazad do stola.
En: Then he started a new, improvised melody, boldly dancing backward toward the table.

Sr: Aleksandra i Milena su pljeskale, a cela kafana se pridružila, ohrabrujući ga.
En: Aleksandra and Milena applauded, and the whole tavern joined in, encouraging him.

Sr: Na kraju, Marko je sjeo za sto s ponosnim osmehom.
En: In the end, Marko sat at the table with a proud smile.

Sr: Aleksandra ga je pohvalila: "Bravo Marko, to je bilo.
En: Aleksandra praised him, "Bravo, Marko, that was...

Sr: originalno!
En: original!"

Sr: "Iako nije uspeo u prvom pokušaju, njegov duh i smisao za humor su osvojili Aleksandru.
En: Although he didn't succeed on the first try, his spirit and sense of humor won Aleksandra over.

Sr: Te večeri, u kafani su se rodila nova prijateljstva, a Marko je shvatio da nije potrebno biti savršen da bi impresionirao nekoga - dovoljno je biti svoj.
En: That evening, new friendships were born in the tavern, and Marko realized that it wasn't necessary to be perfect to impress someone - it's enough to be oneself.

Sr: Smeh i aplauz su još dugo odjekivali tradicionalnim kafanskim zidovima, a Marko, Aleksandra i Milena su otišli kući puni novih lepih uspomena, već planirajući njihov sljedeći izlazak.
En: Laughter and applause echoed through the traditional tavern walls for a long time, and Marko, Aleksandra, and Milena went home full of new beautiful memories, already planning their next outing.


Vocabulary Words:

• The sun: Sunce
• Branches: Krosnji
• Oak trees: Hrastova
• Daylight: Sjaj dana
• Dusk: Sumrak
• Village: Selu
• Wood-carved: Drvorezu
• Adorned: Ukrasenom
• Courtyard: Dvorištu
• Charming: Šarmantan
• Sparkle: Sjaj
• Pulsating: Pulsirala
• Gathered: Okupljali
• Chatting: Razgovarajući
• Laughing: Smejući se
• Cold drinks: Hladno piće
• Cigarette smoke: Dim cigareta
• Songs: Pesme
• Energy: Energija
• Nervous: Nervozniji
• Verse: Stih
• Melody: Melodiju
• Astonishment: Čudu
• Improvise: Improvizovanom
• Dancing: Plešući
• Applauded: Pljeskale
• Encouraging: Ohrabrujući
• Impress: Impresionira
• Laughter: Smeh
• Applause: Aplauz