WARNING: Will contain Yuebin bashing and portrayal in a negative light.

Words in bold at the beginning of chapter are part of the lyrics of the song 'My Girl's Ex-Boyfriend' by Relient K. I don't think this will be more than ten chapters long, and I'll post a chapter on Monday (and possibly Friday) mornings.
I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew or the song 'My Girl's Ex-Boyfriend'.

Chapter One:

When he was seeing her, you could see he had his doubts. Now he's missing her because he knows he's missing out…

Sixteen year old Pudding Fong looked at her reflection in the mirror and tried to smile. While she had completed the physical action of smiling, her eyes didn't twinkle as they normally did. She had dark circles under her eyes and a bruise along her cheekbone.

"He's just stronger than Pud- me," She quickly corrected herself, remembering her fiancé's order to stop speaking in third person.

She was almost an adult, and almost eligible to marry him. Ron Yuebin said he would not live with the shame of knowing his future wife still spoke like a nine-year-old. She tried hard to remember to not fall on the old habit, but it had slipped out last night while they were arguing about something stupid. He hit her just hard enough to give her the bruise as a reminder. Pudding didn't sleep well after that, wondering just what she was getting into. She cried for an hour after that, knowing that she wasn't being a dutiful daughter and fiancé by having those thoughts.

Pudding sighed as she finished covering up the dark marks on her face and got ready to go to work, wondering how she would explain the bruises on her forearms to her bosses and co-workers.

She quickly found some ace bandages and wrapped them around her wrists.

"I tripped down the stairs and landed on my wrists and cheek," Pudding told herself in the mirror. "I'll be fine. Everything will be fine."

She swallowed hard as her reflection gave her a knowing look, one that said 'You're lying'.

"It doesn't have to be perfect," She snapped at herself, as she got up from her vanity table. "It just has to be believable."

She headed to work and quickly put on her uniform. Her co-workers and fellow former Mew Mews seemed to buy her excuse, but she saw they exchanged wary looks.

"Pudding, are you sure that's what really happened?" Ichigo asked as she put her hand on Pudding's shoulder. Pudding gave her a smile.

"Of course, Onee-Chan. Do you not believe me?" Pudding asked.

"We're just worried, Pudding," Zakuro said as she came to stand beside Ichigo and Pudding. "This isn't the first time you've walked in with bruises. And it's usually when Yuebin's in town."

Pudding felt the blood drain from her face.

"Yuebin didn't do it!" Pudding said harshly, trying to make herself believe the words she spoke. "Yuebin would never hurt Pud-" She cut herself off. The former Mews exchanged another look.

"Pudding?" Lettuce whispered.

"I'm trying to break that habit," Pudding said carefully. "I'm too old to talk like that. I'm sixteen, soon to be married. Now, will you all get off my back and let's get to work?"

Pudding felt bad about snapping at the older girls, her teammates and sisters in everything but blood, but she needed for them to stop asking questions.

It wasn't the first time they had this conversation either.

Pudding worked hard that day at the Café, trying to keep her mind busy. Sometime after the lunchtime rush, she was cleaning a table when she heard a deep male voice from behind her.

"Excuse me, Miss?"

"Yes, sir, how can I help-" Pudding said as she turned around to face the man. Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened at who she saw. "-You?"

The speaker was a tall sixteen year old boy with long, elf-like ears, golden-orange eyes that had slits for pupils and auburn hair. The last time she had seen him, his hair was tied up in two pigtails on the top of his head. Now, his hair was long and shaggy, hanging around his shoulders, and the part of his hair closest to the left side of his face was tied in a single pigtail with golden leather strips. He wore black shorts that went to his knees and an open red vest with a high collar that showed off his muscles. He wore no shoes, but had white cloths wrapped around his feet and went up mid-calf. He also had similar wrappings around his hands that went up to mid-forearm.

His eyes twinkled as he grinned and he said,

"I'm looking for a candy drop."

"Taru-Taru," Pudding whispered in shock.