Sweet Nothings.

The Heart's song.

The heart to most, is simply known as an organ which ensures the continuation of life on earth. To Rachel; the hopeless romantic, the heart was a half of a whole and in order to find the other half, you had to find your soul mate.

For Rachel, finding the half of her heart was harder than she thought.

At thirty five, the chance of finding love seemed like merely a wasted dream to Rachel. She no longer felt that pull she would in her younger years, the pull that had her smiling at every male she passed in hopes that he would be the last.

Thirty five years of never having a romantic love had finally seemed to dim the light within her. Too many bad dates and failed relationships had caused the once hopeless romantic to lose all hope.

That was until the night of her thirty sixth birthday. As a surprise to her friend, Belinda had planned a large party to celebrate Rachel's birthday the only way she knew how; in a rented out club filled with their closest friends.

Rachel had been flattered by the gesture but, a night shaking her hips to tunes that were now outdated as she tried to relive her younger years, was not the plan Rachel had for her evening. In truth, Rachel simply wanted a night alone at home with her favourite book and Steven Irks music in the background.

She had had it all planned out. She was going to fall on her couch after getting home from her job as a wedding consultant, pull out her trusted copy of Pride and Prejudice and press play on track 4 of Steven Irks Soul Music CD.

It would be a tranquil setting, one she dreamed of celebrating her aging soul in. To Rachel, nothing was better than the hum of the city being blocked out by the poetry of her favourite author as she read the love of two perfect hearts finding one another, all with her favourite violinist in the background.

Belinda however, had other plans it seemed.

"I think I'm going to head on home," Rachel screamed over the thumping bass of the rave song that played in the club.

Belinda stared wide-eyed at Rachel, "This is your party."

Rachel shrugged, "And you also know this isn't my scene. Honestly Linda, I don't know why you even planned this for me. I don't even know half the people here."

"I thought you could use a night out, a night away from Jane Austen and Steven Irks."

Rachel shook her head and smiled, "So you do know me then."

"Too well. If you want to leave, you can Rachel. It's a shame though but I get it."

Rachel nodded before kissing Belinda's cheek and rushing out of the humid and loud building. Once outside, she paused. Though her original plan was to stay home, now that she was out, she suddenly had the desire to stay out.

Looking down the street, Rachel noticed the familiar yellow heading toward her and quickly shot her hand up in the air. The taxi pulled up to the curb and she climbed in.

"The Tavern please." The driver nodded and drove off, away from the club.

Rachel sat back against the taxi seat as she waited to be taken to the hole-in-the-wall jazz bar down town. Rachel had stumbled across the bar two years earlier when one of her dates had asked to meet her there. The date had been a dud but she had found love with the bar.

The Tavern was a small, intimate building that was circular in shape with a small bar along the one wall, five small rounded tables in the centre and a stage against the other side. The bar's main attraction was not in its fine selection of alcoholic beverages but rather in the live talent that created a rhythmic ambiance.