Author's Note: This story was inspired by Adele's When We Were Young. This is a RolfXPrincess tale.

She had to jump through hoops with her agent and manager, but she managed to pull it off. She got the time off from her North American Tour to come to Peach Creek to go to her high school reunion. She had tried to get Peach Creek on the tour, but this tour was about promoting her 10th album, so only major cities were hit. Peach City did well. It was only 30 minutes away from her old stomping grounds, but it wasn't Peach Creek. She felt she owed the city that made her a star a visit.

She called Nazz and begged her to keep the news a secret. She wanted everyone to come. If it was announced that she'd be there, she'd have too many people that she needed to see not come and even more coming that had no business being there. She just wanted to see her friends again. A surprise assured that.

She stopped by the cemetery before heading to the Marriott where the reunion was taking place at. She had to pay her respects to the woman who gave her first start and her life.

Here Lies

Elizabeth Anne Jackson

Beloved Mother and Friend

"God, I miss you, Momma," she said as she laid a single daisy on the headstone.

As she left the cemetery, she didn't notice a very tall figure, with his own bouquet of daisies, watching her with surprised eyes.

The reunion was well underway when she got there. Sneaking through the hotel's kitchen, she sent Nazz a text when she reached the backstage to let her know she had arrived. Looking on the stage she was pleased that they brought in a grand piano. She just hoped things would go as planned.

"OK, guys, I'm so happy to see so many familiar and not so familiar faces here with us," Nazz said when she stepped to the mic stand on the floor below the stage.

The fact that May Kanker had some work done was not surprising. But no one recognized her. She was proud of her new look and only flipped her long blond hair at Nazz's shady remark.

"But, as you can see behind me, one of our classmates is here to let us bask in the glory of their talent again."

At this, Kevin gave Edd a grin and watched as his husband turned his favorite shade of red, while shaking his head no. Edd had no clue what Nazz was getting at, even though most of their class kept cheering for him.

"You guys, it's not Double D," Nazz went on, giggling herself at his sigh of relief.

It was enough that the MIT Science Professor was there. Edd had hoped that whatever news that MIT put out about him and his accomplishments would be enough. He forgot that his husband was a bit of a bragger, be it about the redhead himself, the high school teams he coached or Edd. Especially, Edd.

"You guys may know her as our former dance captain, resident Afro Queen and all around kickass diva from our Diva Trio. But the world knows her as Princess. Peach Creek, give it up for Angela Michelle Jackson!"

At this, the ballroom exploded with cheers. Most hadn't seen her since graduation. Her mother had been killed in a car accident by Rolf's Nana two months before. She only went to prom because Kevin told her that Edd would be broken hearted if she didn't. No one broke Edd's heart. Kevin spent most of freshman year trying to get it and keep it, all while maintaining his bad boy image. He only ended up hurting the poor genius.

When he finally managed to get back in his good graces, he made it a point to make sure that if Edd wasn't happy, no one was. So she went to prom. She danced with Edd, took pictures with Nazz and Marie, sulked with Rave and stopped Eddy and Nat from spiking the punch. She had the best night of her life. But six weeks later, she was gone.

And now she was back. And a foreign young man at the table her friends were gathered at was stunned. He hadn't been seeing things.

Angela was back in Peach Creek.

She left for Los Angeles the morning after graduation to audition for The Voice. Peach Creek broke the Internet voting for her. She won and was now the critically acclaimed voice of her generation. Her latest album was an ode to the place that made her what she was. A songbird with a warrior's heart. A Princess. Only Peach Creek understood and that's all that mattered to her. The label was just glad to make some money off of it.

And as she sat at that grand piano, he wondered, "Does she still care?"

He would soon find out that she did and had never really stopped.

"This is only going to work one way," she told her classmates with a grin.

She rolled her neck and then threw her head back before a wide smile cracked across her face.

"DOUBLE D!"

The genius was by her side in an instant and the place exploded in cheers again. They both sang in the school choir and he was her ready accompanist for all her solos and helped her write the music for her swan song for the Talent Show junior year.

Enveloped in her friend's strong hug, she felt like herself again. She wasn't the prima donna superstar, she was simply Angela, Ang, Angie. She was Princess, too. But not like the way the rest of the world saw her. She was just another girly girl trying to find her way in the world.

"What'll it be?," he asked, delicate hands hovering above the ivory keys.

"I only promised Nazz three songs, ok?

He nodded. The superstar's time was precious.

"Let's start with I See Me."

He made a face.

"Staaaaaph it, D!," she giggled.

The song was written by hack song writers for the The Voice that would launch her career. Most anyone that knew her knew the song was hokey, but she wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Plus, she knew that some people actually liked the tune.

So he played the song and she sang it and at least 2/3s of her former classmates were thrilled to hear the tune. Thankfully, it was a short song and Edd was just as relieved to not be playing it anymore as she was to not sing it.

"Next," he grinned, getting back into their old rhythm.

"Peachy Keen!"

The ode to her old stomping grounds was Peach Creek High's unofficial anthem. And a hit with everyone in the room. Edd pouted when the song was over but a kiss blown from Kevin perked him up again.

"And lastly?"

"For You."

Edd paled.

"Please, D?"

He couldn't say no to the pleading look in her dark brown eyes. But he also hoped that she knew what she was doing. The song was a poem she wanted to convert into a song. She sang it at the Talent Show junior year. It was her heart song for one person. And he heard it well. He sang his own back to her that summer between junior and senior year and they had the most beautiful duet in school, next to Kevin and Edd, of course.

But the song ended when his grandmother, who shouldn't have been driving, didn't stop at her stop sign and careened her car into the driver's side door of Angela's mother's car at some 65 miles an hour in a 25 mile per hour zone, killing her instantly. He paid his respects at the funeral, but she couldn't face him. He knew the old woman had no business driving, but didn't stop it.

While she sulked with Rave at Prom, Kevin had to talk him out of exploding at her because he was in his own pain that no one was acknowledging. It took her years to grow up and forgive him. They were kids. He had no control over his grandmother, just as she had no control on her mom insisting on taking the mail for the toy store she managed to the post office herself.

As Edd played the intro, their classmates gasped and she prayed to the Heavens that he was there and that would forgive her for being so unforgiving.

And then she sang. She sang her heart out. She sang for her life. The YouTube videos taken that night showed the world where it was she came from but also where her heart first took flight. A woman in love is a beautiful thing. A woman experiencing heartbreak makes the Heavens cry their own sad song. But a woman asking for forgiveness was to show a graceful type of strength that not many could exhibit or even handle.

And when the song ended, PCH gave her the same standing ovation that they gave her the last time she sang that song. And through tear filled eyes, she saw a tall figure leave the ballroom.

Edd quickly enveloped her in another strong hug and whispered in her ear, "Kevin got us the private bar upstairs at Candy's. We're all meeting there after we leave here."

She nodded, pulled herself together, gave a wave and a bow to her classmates before disappearing backstage again.

She considered going back to her hotel room. She considered going to the cul-de-sac. But she decided to go to the dive bar in downtown Peach Creek instead. She needed a drink to numb her feels.

She wasn't there 10 minutes when she saw a long shadow fall over her. Steeling her emotions against the tornado that was taking place in her soul, she looked up with a smile on her face and said, "Long time, no see."

"Hello, Princess Angela."

His accent was still just as thick. He was still just as tall. His hair was just as blue and those brown eyes were still just as sad as they were the last time she saw them on the day of her mother's funeral.

"Hey, Rolfie."

"What'll it be?," the bartender asked the tall foreign man.

"Knob Creek on the rocks."

"You know your bourbon."

"And you know your wine," he said as he cocked his head to her third glass of Mascato.

"I like the sweet stuff."

"I know," he smiled. Her sweet tooth nearly rivaled Edd's.

"H-How are you?," she asked.

She was genuinely curious. She hadn't seen him in 15 years and the last time they saw each other was on the worst day of her life.

"I'm well. I've got three stands at all the Farmer's Market's in Peach City."

"That's great!," she said brightly.

She knew that taking his farm to market had been a long time dream and she was genuinely happy that it had come true for him.

"Nana died two years ago."

"I-I'm so sorry, Rolfie."

The tears of empathy in her eyes couldn't be denied. She felt his pain. On every level.

When he drew her into a hug, a million apologies were squeezed out, accepted and forgiven onto the other's shoulders.

And that's how their long time friends found them. Wrapped up in an embrace that was far too long in coming.

When they pulled back from each other, they knew that there was no new beginning, but they had the closure that they both desperately needed.

"Time to get the party started!," Nat called from the doorway.

She smiled and looked at the young man sitting next to her. He grinned and it was like old times again as he pulled out his phone and said, "Yes, but first, lemme take a selfie."