Fluent Fiction - Croatian: Tram Trouble: A Twist of Fate in Zagreb
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Story Transcript:

Hr: U jednom mirnom dijelu Zagreba, sunce je sramežljivo virilo iza oblaka, označavajući početak novoga dana.
En: In a peaceful part of Zagreb, the sun shyly peeked out from behind the clouds, marking the beginning of a new day.

Hr: Na jednoj klupi u parku Zrinjevac sjedila je Ivana, zamišljena i uronjena u pages knjige koju je čitala svakodnevno na putu do posla.
En: Ivana sat on a bench in Zrinjevac Park, lost in thought and immersed in the pages of a book she read every day on her way to work.

Hr: Marko, njegov kolega i tajni obožavatelj, nestrpljivo ju je čekao da pojedu zajednički doručak prije nego što započne radni dan.
En: Marko, her colleague and secret admirer, impatiently waited for her so they could have breakfast together before starting their workday.

Hr: Ali Ivana nije bila svjesna Markovih planova.
En: But Ivana was oblivious to Marko's plans.

Hr: Ona je bila posvećena svom jutarnjem ritualu.
En: She was dedicated to her morning ritual.

Hr: U jednom trenu, pogledala je na sat i shvatila da je zakasnila.
En: At one point, she glanced at her watch and realized she was running late.

Hr: Brzo je zatvorila knjigu i pojurila prema najbližoj tramvajskoj stanici.
En: She quickly closed her book and hurried towards the nearest tram station.

Hr: U žurbi, nije ni pogledala na koju stranu tramvaj vozi.
En: In her haste, she didn't even check which direction the tram was heading.

Hr: Marko, koji je upravo izvadio dva sendviča iz torbe, podigao je pogled samo da bi vidio kako Ivana nestaje u daljini.
En: Marko, who had just taken out two sandwiches from his bag, looked up only to see Ivana disappearing in the distance.

Hr: Brzo je pokupio svoje stvari i krenuo za njom.
En: He hurriedly gathered his things and set off after her.

Hr: Trčao je koliko su noge mogle nositi, ali pri slijedećem koraku, njegovo stopalo naletjelo je na nešto klisko i okruglo - banana koru!
En: He ran as fast as his legs could carry him, but at the next step, his foot hit something slippery and round - a banana peel!

Hr: S lakoćom jednog crtićevskog junaka, Marko se poskliznuo i pao na leđa.
En: Like a character from a cartoon, Marko slipped and fell on his back.

Hr: Ivana, međutim, ništa nije sumnjala.
En: Meanwhile, Ivana suspected nothing.

Hr: Smjestila se u tramvaj i izgubila u mislima dok je grad prolazio pokraj prozora.
En: She settled into the tram and got lost in her thoughts as the city passed by the window.

Hr: Tek kad je tramvaj zastao i naišao na krajnju stanicu, Ivana je shvatila svoju pogrešku.
En: Only when the tram stopped at the end station did Ivana realize her mistake.

Hr: Bila je na potpuno krivom kraju grada.
En: She was at the completely wrong end of the city.

Hr: Marko se u međuvremenu ponovno poskliznuo na istu banana koru, iako je ovoga puta bio oprezniji.
En: In the meantime, Marko once again slipped on the same banana peel, although this time he was more cautious.

Hr: Izgledalo je kao da banana ima nešto protiv njega.
En: It seemed like the banana had it out for him.

Hr: Na kraju je odlučio više ne trčati, nego je uzeo taksi kako bi pronašao Ivanu.
En: In the end, he decided to stop running and took a taxi to find Ivana.

Hr: Znao je koje tramvajske linije ona obično koristi i nadao se da će moći predvidjeti njenu sljedeću stanicu.
En: He knew which tram lines she usually took and hoped to predict her next stop.

Hr: U tom trenutku, Ivana, već umorna i pomalo frustrirana, stajala je na nepoznatoj stanici i čekala tramvaj koji će je vratiti.
En: At that moment, Ivana stood at an unfamiliar station, tired and somewhat frustrated, waiting for the tram to take her back.

Hr: Gledala je oko sebe i pitala se kako će ikada stići na posao na vrijeme.
En: She looked around and wondered how she would ever make it to work on time.

Hr: Taman kad je iz daljine naišao tramvaj, Ivana je začula poznat glas.
En: Just as a tram approached in the distance, Ivana heard a familiar voice.

Hr: Bila je to Markova doziva.
En: It was Marko calling out to her.

Hr: Okrenula se i ugledala ga kako izlazi iz taksija, briše prašinu sa hlača i gleda prema njoj sa smiješkom.
En: She turned around and saw him getting out of a taxi, dusting off his pants and smiling at her.

Hr: "Zašto si tako brzo otišla?
En: "Why did you leave so quickly?

Hr: Imao sam iznenađenje za doručak", rekao je Marko, još uvijek bez daha.
En: I had a surprise for breakfast," said Marko, still out of breath.

Hr: Ivana se nasmiješila i odgovorila, "Oprosti, slučajno sam ušla u krivi tramvaj.
En: Ivana smiled and replied, "I'm sorry, I accidentally took the wrong tram.

Hr: Ali izgleda da sam pronašla nešto puno bolje od pravog smjera - pravog prijatelja koji brine za mene.
En: But it seems like I found something much better than the right direction - a true friend who cares for me."

Hr: "Od tog dana, Ivana je uvijek dvaput pogledala prije nego što bi ušla u tramvaj, a Marko je pažljivo izbjegavao banane na putu.
En: From that day on, Ivana always double-checked before boarding a tram, and Marko carefully avoided bananas on the way.

Hr: I tako su zajedno nastavili svoje jutarnje rituale, ovoga puta uvijek zajedno, razgovarajući i smijući se na putu do posla, uvjereni da greške ponekad mogu voditi prema nečemu lijepom i neočekivanom.
En: And so, they continued their morning rituals together, always chatting and laughing on their way to work, convinced that mistakes can sometimes lead to something beautiful and unexpected.


Vocabulary Words:

• peaceful: miran
• shyly: sramežljivo
• peeked: virilo
• bench: klupa
• lost: izgubljen
• thought: misao
• immersed: uronjen
• pages: stranice
• colleague: kolega
• admirer: obožavatelj
• impatiently: nestrpljivo
• breakfast: doručak
• oblivious: nesvjestan
• dedicated: posvećen
• ritual: ritual
• glanced: pogledao
• running late: kasni
• hurried: žurio
• tram station: tramvajska stanica
• haste: žurba
• direction: smjer
• disappearing: nestajanje
• gathered: pokupio
• slipped: poskliznuo
• banana peel: banana kora
• cartoon: crtić
• settled: smjestila
• realize: shvatila
• wrong: kriv
• end station: krajnja stanica