Fluent Fiction - Slovenian: Triumph Through Teamwork: A Science Fair's Unexpected Hero
Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:
fluentfiction.com/sl/episode/2026-01-18-08-38-20-sl

Story Transcript:

Sl: Snežinke so počasi padale na tla in prekrivale majhna dvorišča mestnih hiš z belo odejo zimskega miru.
En: Snowflakes slowly fell to the ground, covering the small courtyards of the city's houses with a white blanket of winter peace.

Sl: V šolski avli je bil zrak napet in živahen, saj je šola prirejala letni znanstveni sejem.
En: In the school lobby, the air was tense and lively, as the school was hosting its annual science fair.

Sl: Poleg drugih projektov so na mizi stala dva mlada raziskovalca, Matej in Zala.
En: Among other projects stood two young researchers, Matej and Zala.

Sl: Matej je bil zadržan, ponavadi nervozen pred publiko.
En: Matej was reserved, usually nervous in front of an audience.

Sl: Zala, na drugi strani, je bila samozavestna in vedno pripravljena prevzeti pobudo.
En: Zala, on the other hand, was confident and always ready to take the initiative.

Sl: Njuna miza je bila krasitev stvari, ki niso bile tako svetleče kot nekatere druge, a imeli so nekaj posebnega – projekt, ki je raziskoval alternativne vire energije z uporabo preprostih domačih materialov.
En: Their table was decorated with items that were not as shiny as some of the others, but they had something special - a project that explored alternative energy sources using simple household materials.

Sl: Matej je globoko vdihnil, ko je občutil prve znake živčnosti.
En: Matej took a deep breath as he felt the first signs of nervousness.

Sl: "Zala, kaj če.
En: "Zala, what if...?"

Sl: " je začel, a Zala ga je spodbudila z nasmehom: "Ne skrbi, Matej.
En: he began, but Zala encouraged him with a smile: "Don't worry, Matej.

Sl: Sva pripravila.
En: We're prepared.

Sl: Sedaj samo morava pokazati, kaj vse znava.
En: Now we just have to show what we know."

Sl: "Bilo je jasno, da je Zala odlična govorka.
En: It was clear that Zala was an excellent speaker.

Sl: Začela je transferirati energijo občinstva s svojim prepričljivim nastopom.
En: She began to transfer the audience's energy with her convincing presentation.

Sl: Matej je za trenutek pozabil na strah, začutil je navdih njenega govora.
En: Matej for a moment forgot his fear, feeling inspired by her speech.

Sl: Skupaj sta bila popolna ekipa, ker je Zala povlekla Mateja iz njegovega oklepa.
En: Together they were a perfect team because Zala drew Matej out of his shell.

Sl: Potem pa se je zgodilo.
En: Then it happened.

Sl: Tehnična neprijetnost.
En: A technical difficulty.

Sl: Malo stikalo na njihovem modelu je prenehalo delovati.
En: A small switch on their model stopped working.

Sl: Zala je za hip zmedeno pogledala, toda Matej je začutil adrenalinski val.
En: Zala looked confused for a moment, but Matej felt an adrenaline rush.

Sl: S fokusom, ki ga običajno ni čutil na takih dogodkih, se je spomnil na enostavno rešitev.
En: With a focus he normally did not feel at such events, he remembered a simple solution.

Sl: Kratek kabel je povezal na drug kontakt in model se je s svetlobno hitrostjo ponovno zagnal.
En: He connected a short wire to another contact, and the model restarted at lightning speed.

Sl: Matej je pogledal Zalo, ki ga je spodbujala z očmi.
En: Matej looked at Zala, who was encouraging him with her eyes.

Sl: Sedaj je bil na vrsti on.
En: Now it was his turn.

Sl: Ko je stal pred žirijo, jim je začel s samozavestnimi besedami razlagati, zakaj je njun projekt pomemben in kateri koncepti so za tem.
En: As he stood before the jury, he began to explain with confident words why their project was important and what concepts were behind it.

Sl: Kritiki so se nagnili naprej, očarani nad nenapovedano predstavo Mateja.
En: The critics leaned forward, captivated by Matej's unexpected performance.

Sl: Občinstvo je ploskalo in oba mlada raziskovalca sta bila v središču pozornosti.
En: The audience applauded, and both young researchers were the center of attention.

Sl: Matej se je počutil povzdignjeno, kot še nikoli.
En: Matej felt uplifted like never before.

Sl: Videl je, da zmore več, kot je verjel.
En: He saw that he was capable of more than he believed.

Sl: Zala je z nasmehom gledala in vedela, da je pomembneje podpirati drug drugega, kot zgolj doseči zmago.
En: Zala watched with a smile, understanding that supporting each other was more important than just winning.

Sl: Matej in Zala nista osvojila nagrade, vendar to ni bilo nič proti občutku, da sta skupaj premagala izziv.
En: Matej and Zala did not win the prize, but that was nothing compared to the feeling that they had overcome a challenge together.

Sl: Iz šolske avle sta odšla v zimski mraz, vedoč, da sta dosegla nekaj veliko večjega.
En: They left the school lobby into the winter cold, knowing they had achieved something much greater.

Sl: V snežni belini zime so našli nov zagon za prihodnje priložnosti in nova znanja.
En: In the snowy whiteness of winter, they found new momentum for future opportunities and new knowledge.


Vocabulary Words:

• snowflakes: snežinke
• tense: napet
• lobby: avla
• reserved: zadržan
• initiative: pobuda
• decorated: krasitev
• household materials: domači materiali
• nervousness: živčnost
• prepared: pripravljen
• presentation: nastop
• inspired: navdih
• challenge: izziv
• technical difficulty: tehnična neprijetnost
• adrenaline rush: adrenalinski val
• wire: kabel
• contact: kontakt
• captivated: očarani
• unexpected: nenapovedan
• uplifted: povzdignjen
• achieved: dosegel
• momentum: zagon
• concepts: koncepti
• focus: fokus
• critics: kritiki
• applauded: ploskalo
• center of attention: središče pozornosti
• encouraging: spodbujala
• shell: oklepa
• confident: samozavesten
• critics: kritiki