The road less traveled — A walk I didn’t plan

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I didn’t know the city.That was the whole point.

It was my first time in Novi Sad. I had just started studying, still trying to get used to everything—new streets, new faces, new rhythm. That day I had some free time, nothing special to do, so I decided to go for a walk.

At first, I stayed where it felt safe. Wider streets, familiar directions, places where there were people around. But at some point, without thinking too much, I kept walking further than I should have.

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The buildings became rarer. The streets quieter.It didn’t feel wrong. Just different.

I told myself it was nothing. Just curiosity pulling me a bit further. That’s how it usually starts.

By the time I realized I had reached the outskirts, the sun was already going down. That kind of dusk when everything looks the same and distances feel longer than they are.

I should have turned back then.But I didn’t.I kept walking.

And then I heard it.
“Hey, you!”

At first, I thought I imagined it. But then it came again, louder this time. Voices. Behind me.

I didn’t turn around.Something in me just said—don’t.

My pace changed without me even noticing. One step, then another, faster and faster. I wasn’t running yet, but I was close.

“Hey, you!”

Now it was clear.They were calling me.

That’s when I started running.

I didn’t look back. Not once. I just kept my eyes on the ground in front of me, watching where I stepped, afraid that one wrong move would slow me down.

My heart was racing like crazy—like a rabbit trying to escape something it can’t see.

I didn’t think. I just moved.

Then, almost instinctively, I turned into a narrow side path. I didn’t even know where it led. I just knew I had to get away from that direction.

The path kept going. It didn’t end.

Instead, it slowly opened up, becoming wider, clearer, like it was guiding me somewhere. The voices behind me started fading. First louder, then distant, then gone.

But I still didn’t stop.

I didn’t trust the silence yet.

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Only when I reached a proper street did I slow down. Then another one. And suddenly, there it was—lights.

Traffic. Noise. People.

When I had reached Bulevar Oslobođenja, than finally stopped.Took a breath.And only then realized how fast my heart was beating.

I stood there for a moment, pretending everything was normal, like I had just been walking all along.

Never found out who was calling me.Maybe it was nothing. Maybe it was something.But that day I learned something simple.The road less traveled isn’t always peaceful.Sometimes, it just teaches you how fast you can run—and how important it is to find your way back.

on Serbian:

Put kojim se ređe ide — Šetnja koju nisam planirao

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Nisam poznavao grad.I to je bila poenta.

Bio sam prvi put u Novi Sad. Tek sam počeo studije, pokušavao da pohvatam sve—nove ulice, nova lica, novi ritam. Tog dana sam imao slobodnog vremena, ništa posebno, pa sam rešio da odem u šetnju.

U početku sam se držao sigurnog. Šire ulice, poznati pravci, mesta gde ima ljudi. Ali u jednom trenutku, bez mnogo razmišljanja,
otišao sam dalje nego što sam planirao.

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Zgrade su postajale ređe. Ulice tiše.Nije delovalo pogrešno. Samo drugačije.

Rekao sam sebi da je to ništa. Samo radoznalost koja me vuče malo dalje. Tako to obično počinje.

Dok sam shvatio da sam stigao na periferiju, već je pao sumrak. Ono vreme kad sve izgleda isto i kad daljine deluju veće nego što jesu.

Trebalo je tada da se vratim.

Ali nisam.

Nastavio sam dalje.

I onda sam čuo.

„Ej, ti!“

U prvi mah sam pomislio da umišljam. Ali onda opet—glasnije. Glasovi. Iza mene.

Nisam se okrenuo.

Nešto u meni je samo reklo—nemoj.

Korak mi se ubrzao sam od sebe. Jedan pa drugi, sve brže. Još nisam trčao, ali bio sam blizu.

„Ej, ti!“

Sad je bilo jasno.

Zvali su mene.

I tada sam potrčao.

Nisam se okrenuo. Nijednom. Samo sam gledao u put ispred sebe, gde gazim, plašeći se da me jedan pogrešan korak ne uspori.

Srce mi je lupalo kao ludo—kao kod zeca koji beži od nečega što ne vidi.

Nisam razmišljao. Samo sam se kretao.

Onda sam, gotovo instinktivno, skrenuo u neku usku poprečnu stazu. Nisam znao gde vodi. Samo sam znao da moram dalje od tog pravca.

Staza je išla dalje. Nije se završavala.

Naprotiv, širila se, postajala sve jasnija, kao da me vodi negde. Glasovi iza mene su slabili. Prvo glasni, pa udaljeni, pa su nestali.

Ali nisam stao.

Nisam još verovao tišini.

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Tek kad sam izašao na pravu ulicu, usporio sam. Pa još jedna. I onda—svetla.

Saobraćaj. Ljudi. Buka.Kada sam izašao sam na Bulevar Oslobođenja,tada sam konačno stao.Udahnuo.I tek tada shvatio koliko mi srce lupa.

Stajao sam tu par trenutaka, praveći se da je sve normalno, kao da sam sve vreme samo šetao.

Nikad nisam saznao ko me je zvao.Možda nije bilo ništa. Možda jeste.Ali tog dana sam naučio jednu stvar.Put kojim se ređe ide nije uvek miran.Ponekad te samo nauči koliko brzo možeš da trčiš—i koliko je važno da pronađeš put nazad.