Miracle, a Tokyo Mew Mew fan fiction

Ch. 1 "I Quit"

By: Rin 596

Disclaimer: I don't own this shit. Meh.

It was an ordinary day at Café Mew Mew. Pudding was doing tricks, Mint was drinking her tea, and Ryou was getting after Ichigo every chance he got.

"Mo!" Ichigo exclaimed, throwing down the cloth she was using to clean a table. She glared at Ryou.

"WHY do you always get after me? I'm the only one that ever actually works in this god forsaken café. Lettuce is always breaking dishes, Pudding only performs, all Mint does is sit on her ass and drink her damn tea, and Zakuro isn't even here most of the time! If anything, you should be Thanking me; not criticizing me every five seconds."

Ryou looked at her for a few seconds, a weary look on his face, then cocked his eyebrow and sighed.

"Are you quite done causing a scene? Cause if you are, I'd like you to continue working."

Ichigo looked at him in shock, then, her face reddening in anger, slapped Ryou across his cheek. The sound of the slap echoed through the room, the customers and other employees having quieted at the sound. Ryou was flabbergasted, looking down at the enraged cat-girl in front of him. After several awkward seconds, Ryou opened his mouth to speak, but Ichigo beat him to the punch.

"I quit."

The other Mews gasped at this. Ryou's eyes widened in disbelief.

"W-what did you say?" he managed to whisper. Without looking up, Ichigo repeated herself.

"I said I quit."

And with that said, Ichigo stormed into the locker room, slamming the door behind her. Ryou stared after her, then looked over to the rest of the café. Ichigo having left the room, the customers had started whispering to each other, wondering what the handsome young owner of the place had done to have caused the normally cheery redhead to have become so furious. The Mews, Mint in particular, were looking at the door to the changing room with pained expressions.

After a few minutes of relative silence, the changing room door flew open. Ichigo, having changed back into her normal clothes, looked around the café, her piercing eyes daring anyone to speak. Then, without a word, she exited Café Mew Mew. Ryou sighed, watching her retreating form, and uttered a single word.

"Ichigo…"

Once Ichigo was a few blocks away from the café, she slowed down, reality crashing down on her.

'Oh my GOD, what did I just do?' she thought, burying her face in her hands. She slowly sank down onto the side walk, and leaned against a wall. She sat there for several minutes, wallowing in her anguish.

"Ichigo?..."

Ichigo startled at the voice, her cat features popping out.

"Nya?" she exclaimed, covering her Neko-mimi with her hands. She looked up, and standing there was her boyfriend, Aoyama Masaya, with a smile on his cheery face.

"Masaya!" Ichigo squealed, quickly jumping up to give him a hug. Masaya laughed, hugging her back.

"What are you doing here? Why were you sitting on the ground?"

At this Ichigo's face fell, her cat ears drooping, and her tail slunk between her legs. Her eyes watered a little, and she looked to the ground.

"mumblemumble…" she said incoherently.

"What?" Masaya said, concerned about the dramatic change in his girlfriend's mood.

"I quit." she whispered, still looking at the ground. Masaya frowned.

"Why? What happened?"

Ichigo laughed bitterly, and shook her head.

"I was just being stupid. Typical of me, huh?" She sighed. "I'm just going to go home now."

And with that, she ran away. Masaya looked after her, his eyes filled with concern. Then, he turned and ran in the direction of the café.

Akasaka Keiichiro, one of the managers of Café Mew Mew, was sweeping the pathway outside when Masaya arrived at the café. Keiichiro looked up at him, and his famous smile graced his lips.

"Ahh, Aoyama-san." Keiichiro said, walking up to the panting younger man. "To what does my humble café owe to have someone so important to one of our employees come visit?"

Masaya looked up at him, beads of sweat slowly dripping down his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but Keiichiro continued talking before he could utter anything.

"My, you look exhausted! Please, come in and sit down."

"Um, okay…" Masaya said, a confounded look on his face. He shook his head, wondering at the odd mannerisms of one of his beloved's former bosses.

When the door to the café opened, the Mews all looked up, faint traces of hope upon their faces. When they say who it was, though, their faces fell, and they resumed working. Masaya frowned, and looked at Keiichiro, who was still smiling.

"Here, sit down." Keiichiro said, gesturing to an open table. "You must be famished. I'll go get you a slice of cake." And with that, Keiichiro glided into the kitchen. Masaya sighed, and slid down in his chair. He was tired, after all. He closed his eyes, but a few seconds later, he was forced to open them when someone spoke to him.

"Ano… Aoyama-san?" spoke Lettuce, who was looking at the floor, a faint blush on her cheeks. "Why are you here? If you're looking for Ichigo-san, she isn't here."

Masaya frowned, and started to speak. "Actually, that's the reason I-"

He was cut off by Ryou running down the stairs. When Ryou reached the bottom, he looked around quickly, and then turned to Mint, who was morosely sweeping the same spot over and over.

"Mint! I heard talking. Is Ichi…" He trailed off when he saw Masaya sitting down at a table, looking at him with a blank face. Ryou's face darkened, and he then started turning around. Before he could get very far though, Masaya spoke.

"We need to talk, Ryou-san."

Ryou glowered at him, but nodded in acquiesce.

"Fine." He said, continuing up the stairs. As Masaya started following him, Ryou suddenly stopped and turned around. He looked down at Masaya, and spoke. "And it's Shirogane-san to you."

Ichigo flopped onto her bed, letting a groan. She turned her head to the side, and she looked out her window. When she had arrived at her house, she had gone straight up to her room, not in the mood to talk to anyone. She started to tear up again, thinking about what she had done.

'How could I have been so rash?' she thought, burying her head in her pillow. 'Sure it's really annoying how he's always bossing me around, and it's unfair how I'm the only one who really works, but I shouldn't have quit. Yelling would've probably been enough.' She sighed. 'Man, Shirogane looked really shocked. And a little… upset?' Ichigo flopped over onto her back, and continued to contemplate. She frowned.

'Oh well. It was probably nothing.' She looked up at her ceiling, then closed her eyes. "I'll just take a few days off. Then I'll go back…" Ichigo muttered. Then, she drifted off to sleep.

Ryou opened his door and walked to the middle of his room. Masaya walked in after him, and closed the door. The slight click echoed throughout the small room. For a few moments, nobody talked. Ryou relished the silenced, then, sighing, turned around to face the younger boy.

"Okay, talk. I'm not really in the mood, so please make it quick." He said, one hand massaging his right temple. The corner of Masaya's mouth quirked slightly in a rare sign of annoyance.

"I want to know why Ichigo quit." He said, his hands clenching into loose fists. Ryou flinched a little at the statement, then shrugged.

"She just overreacted, not really that surprising." Ryou glared at the floor as he said this, still massaging his temple. Masaya frowned, and when he spoke again, there was a slight hint of irritation.

"Ichigo isn't that rash. There must have been something to motivate her. She's not the type to give up so easily." Ryou smiled at that; he knew it was true. He finally removed his right hand from his face, instead crossing it with his left. He smirked.

"You're right, she isn't. As for why she quit, that really isn't your business, is it?" Ryou's eyes sparkled in amusement when Masaya's face contorted in disbelief.

"Excuse me? I'm her boyfriend." Masaya said, his anger barely concealed. Ryou's eye slightly twitched.

"You may be, but that doesn't mean you have to get involved in all of her affairs. I can assume you've already talked, since you know about this in the first place, and if she hasn't already told the reason why she quit, then maybe she doesn't want to. If that's the case, then I'd advise you to just accept this and let me be." With this said, Ryou turned around, walking toward his bed. Before he could get there, though, he was stopped by Masaya's hand on his shoulder.

"You love her, don't you." Masaya stated. Ryou slightly stiffened, and turned his head to the side, meeting Masaya's hard glare. Ryou's face blank, he knocked Masaya's hand off his shoulder.

"That, too, is none of your business." And with that, he pushed Masaya out of his room. Ignoring his protests, he shut the door and locked it. He slide down the door and buried his face in his hands, sighing.

"Ichigo…" He whispered. "Aisheteru…"

End of chapter one