The path not chosen can just be delayed

You make a lot of decisions when writing a novel.

Do those two characters start dating? Does your protagonist accept that job? Does the bomb go off as plan?

You have to make a million little decisions that are right for your novel when writing.

That doesn't mean that you have to let go of the other choice that seemed compelling to you.

If you really liked where the other option might have been going, you can save it for something else. Maybe it's a short story or a sequel or an entirely different novel driven by other characters.

There are a lot of decisions that you have to make when writing a novel. If there's one that you feel particularly sad you didn't get to explore, don't mourn. Recycle it for something even better.