#skada

This street is named after the old Serbian town Skadar, which is on the territory of Albania today. Skadarlija started transforming into a bohemian quarter when a famous kafana/tavern called Dardaneli on Republic Square was closed and Serbian poets, painters, artists moved to Skadarlija’s inns/kafanas. 

You can still visit some restaurants like Three Hats, My Hat, Two Deer and Golden Chalice where you can get authenrit Serbian food, from the old time where Serbian artists would sit down and discuss about life, arts, and politics.

My Hat restaurant

Strolling down the road, we saw the house of the famous Serbian poet Djuro Jaksic. We saw his statue at the Danube Park in Novi Sad too. He must be some hot shot. Today it has been converted into a gathering point for poets participating in the Skadarlija Evenings event and even you can go inside for free. 

Monument to Djuro Jaksic, one of the most famous poets of Serbia

There is a famous sibilj fountain at the end of the street, which is a replica of the fountain in Sarajevo’s Old Town. 

Skadarlija is a perfect place to go back to the old times and experience how Belgrade used to be 100-200 years ago. With its short cobblestones street, authentic Serb food serving restaurants, various monuments of famous people who used to visit this place, it makes a perfect getaway from all the modernization momentarily. 

Monument to traveling actor

Adam crouched off to the side of the hallway, shoulders hunched and eyes glued to his phone as he mindlessly scrolled through TikTok. He was trying to be a polite teammate, waiting for Victor to finish using the bathroom. But instead, he was becoming a comical sight. A six-foot-four teenager with hair covering half his face, huddled in a corner like a scorned toddler.

The venue hallway buzzed with noise, even this far from the main stage. The sound of people working echoed faintly through the facility, staff hurrying past with tangled cables around their arms, and every few seconds, someone in a jersey or black staff uniform shoving through the double doors at the end of the corridor.

Adam however, barely noticed any of it. Instead, scrolling mindlessly through his phone, quietly smirking at the stupid shit his friends sent him through TikTok. As he clicked on another TikTok, the bathroom door burst open. And a blur of white and mint green slammed directly into him.

“Whoa—” His shoulder hit the wall first, then his knees hit the floor. His phone skidded several feet away with a clatter.

“I’m so sorry,” the other person blurted out breathlessly, sounding like they’d just sprinted a marathon.

“Nah, you’re a good man,” Adam reassured automatically, rubbing the back of his neck as he stood. “I was kinda sitting in the middle of the—”

He looked up properly.

Oh.

The kid standing in front of him wore an Oxygen Esports jersey, with mint green accents, slightly oversized sleeves, and a wrinkled hem like they’d been tugged on nervously all day. Their hair was fluffy, looking so soft that Adam immediately wondered what it would feel like to run his hand through it. 

What the fuck?

“-Hello? Your phone?” They said while staring at him with wide eyes.

Adam blinked. They were holding his phone out toward him. Right. Be normal for once. Focus.

“I ‘preciate it, man,” Adam said, taking the phone but not really looking at it. “But could you do one better? What about your phone number?” The words left his mouth before his brain could probably think them through. 

Fucking hell, Adam inside thoughts.

For a second, the shorter man looked genuinely stunned. Then a fierce blush spread across their cheeks so quickly that Adam almost laughed. Their eyes scrunched up, disappearing halfway under all that fluffy hair.

Cute. Ridiculously cute. His brain supplemented unhelpfully.

“I mean so we could duo on ranked together.” Adam added, flustered.

They tilted their head and smiled, a sly little smirk that caught Adam completely off guard. “Uh huh, sure. I’m Logan, by the way. And I’ll give you my number if I win my game.”

Adam barked out a laugh. “That’s evil.”

“You started it.” Logan motioned, with his hands vaguely.

“Fair point.” Adam conceded, scolding his own expression as if it wasn’t already obvious how smitten he was. It’s to duo queue and nothing else, mhm.

Logan crossed their arms, leaning casually against the wall now that neither of them was actively falling over. “What team are you with?”

Adam tugged lightly at the sleeve of his dark jersey. “Shopify. I was on Luminosity last year.”

“No way.”

“What?”

“You’re Mada?” Logan squinted at him harder now, like they were finally putting the pieces together.

Adam snorted. “Uh, yeah, why, man?”

“Oh my god,” Logan muttered, laughing under their breath. “I think I have you and your duo muted because you were trolling voice comms on ranked a few weeks ago.

“Honestly? That's fucking hilarious.” Adam laughed, thinking back to a very late night, where he was definitely fooling around, finding joy in his new soundboard feature.

“So,” Logan asked, grinning as he spoke, “What brings you to sitting on the floor in front of the bathrooms?”

“Waiting for my teammate who’s blowing up the toilet, so we can both get yelled at for missing our pre-match meeting together.” Adam solemnly responds. An awkward silence almost settled between them before Adam leaned back against the wall beside them.

“So,” he said, “why were you sprinting like someone was chasing you out of the bathroom?”

“Well, I was going to be late for my— Oh shit.” Logan groaned, rubbing his face into his hands.

Adam looked down at his phone, it said 2:17 PM. “You have like fifteen minutes left before you need to get on stage for a tech check.”

“Yeah, sorry, I need to go.” Logan sighed, moving to leave. But Adam instinctively reached to grab his wrist, whispering, “You better win.”

Logan crossed his arms again. “Hmm?” Raising an eyebrow.

“I already told you. I’m cheering for that win.” Adam said.

Something softened briefly in Logan’s expression. “Then I guess I can’t lose now.”

Adam grinned. “Good. Because I’m expecting that number afterward.”

Watching Logan disappear down the hall, Adam found himself grinning like an idiot.

“You good, Adam?” A voice behind him called, causing him to jump.

“You done blowing the toilet up?” He snarked back at Victor, running a hand through his hair as if it would disguise his smile. 

It didn’t.

Victor stared at him oddly before saying, “Bro, did you hit your head while waiting for me? What is this dopey ass grin you’re giving me?” Victor’s expression was equally confused and bemused by his teammate’s sudden change in demeanor.

“No, I just saw something funny on Tiktok. Also I just had a short Oxygen kid knock into me. But he was nice enough about it.” Adam casually brushed off. 

“Everyone is shorter compared to your giraffe-looking ass,” Victor said, shaking his head. “Well, let's go then idiot. I have a feeling today’s VOD review won’t be any shorter just because we won.”