The chapters of Tramps Like Us were written and illustrated by Yayoi Ogawa. The series first appeared as a single chapter work, named Pet, that appeared in the June 2000 issue of Kiss Carnival, where it ran for four chapters. It was then transferred to Kiss later in 2000 where it ran until 2005. It was renamed to Kimi wa Pet after the fifth chapter.[1] The chapters tell the story of Sumire, a young professional woman who takes in a younger man as a pet, and her attempts to keep her coworkers and boyfriend from finding out about her pet. The chapters were adapted into a television drama in 2003.[2]
The 82 chapters, called "Rules", were collected and published in 14 bound volumes by Kodansha between December 2000 and December 2005.[3][4] An additional volume called Kimi Wa Pet The Best (きみはペット THE BEST) was released in October 2002.[5] In early 2004, "Supplement: Kimiwa Pet" was included as a free extra with Kiss. A special edition of the eleventh volume was offered which included a toy shaped like Momo.[1]Tokyopop licensed the series for English-language release in North America and gave the series its English name of Tramps Like Us. It released the first volume in August 2004 and the final volume in February 2008.[6][7] As of August 2009, the English edition is out of print.[8] The series was published as Tramps Like Us - Kimi Wa Pet by Tokyopop Germany between November 2004 and February 2007.[9][10] It was published as Kimi Wa Pet - Au pied, chéri! in French by Kurokawa between September 2005 and November 2007.[11][12] It was published in Italian by Star Comics between July 2004 and September 2006 as Sei Il Mio Cucciolo!.[13][14]
Sumire finds a young man injured in a cardboard box and takes him home and nurses him. He doesn't want to leave, so she makes him the offer of him staying as her pet, which he accepts. She names him Momo. Sumire's crush from university Hasumi transfers into her office and asks her out. She accepts. He learns that she has a dog (Momo) and wants to meet the dog - Momo is introduced to Hasumi as Sumire's second cousin. Momo has a dance competition and leaves Sumire for a week. Sumire doesn't get the note and goes sick with worry. She tracks down Junpei who tells her that Takeshi will come back to her.
Momo asks Sumire what they are doing for Christmas. She says she dislikes Christmas. She discusses unwanted gifts from pets with her co-workers. Hasumi also wants to make plans with Sumire for Christmas Eve, but he is called away to work. Momo makes Sumire an unwanted gift of a voucher for him to shampoo her hair, which she discards. He baked her a special Christmas cake with a toy ring inside because of a childhood story she had told him. Hasumi calls up at the last minute to try to see Sumire, but she tells him it's not a good time. He puts away a ring in a box. Sumire's workplace bans smoking, so she tries to quit. She finds it difficult, especially once Hasumi finds out she is trying. She becomes more and more irritated at work, but feels she can get through it by petting Momo when she comes home. Momo is phoned up by his ex-girlfriend, Rumi, who asks him to come see her, and then to kiss her. Sumire gets so agitated at work that she comes home early, expecting to find Momo, and wrecks the apartment and cries. Momo makes out with Rumi, but tells her he has to leave to be home for Sumire. Rumi hits him hard. Momo comes home and Sumire hugs him, relieved. The next day at work, Sumire hears the other women gossiping about Sumire possibly being pregnant due to her quitting smoking, and takes it up again.
Sumire goes to visit Hasumi in Hong Kong and meets his ex-girlfriend Chinfei who now has a young child. Chinfei makes the perfume which Hasumi gave to Sumire as a present. Chinfei tells Sumire that the child is Hasumi's, and asks Sumire to call her any time.
Sumire stews over Chinfei's assertion and picks a physical fight with Hasumi. Sumire then goes and gets drunk and wakes up in Chinfei's house. Chinfei takes care of Sumire and tells her that she lied about her baby's paternity to make Sumire jealous. Rumi finds a bracelet that she had bought for Takeshi when they were dating and confronts him, crying, asking him if he still likes her. He says that he does, but that he needs to move on.
Momo passes out at his class, and Sumire tells Hasumi she'll marry him. Momo and Sumire resolve to rehabilitate themselves to being apart. Sumire offers to take care of Ran while her friend goes on a holiday. Shinobu checks up on Sumire and tells Momo a bit about their childhood. Ran falls in the bathtub and Shinobu gives instructions over the phone to resuscitate Ran, who survives. Sumire and Hasumi, both Cancers, read their horoscope and jump to conclusions. Sukenari loses his will to write, but helping an old man write a love letter to his dying English-speaking wife reignites his passion. Sumire worries about meeting her future in-laws. Emma and Sumire, and later, Sumire and Yuri discuss en, a Buddhist concept similar to fate or luck in relationships. Akane, Sumire's little sister who founded a biker gang, comes to visit and discovers Momo who is going away for a few days to Hong Kong. She talks to Sumire about her grandfather pressuring her to break up with her boyfriend. Her boyfriend gets a conventional job with her grandfather's company so that he can continue to be with Akane and their future child. At the airport, Momo sees Fukushima hanging off Hasumi's arm and takes a photo.
Momo deletes the photo he took of Hatsumi and Fukushima. Sumire discovers the card of a topless bar in Momo's pocket (the bar where Fukushima works) and gives him the silent treatment. She goes on holidays where she is targeted by a rapist who uses hypnotism.
Sumire meets Momo's older sisters and mother and is accepted by them. That night they discuss having a baby. Rumi has trouble fitting in at her new school because she has trouble expressing herself in English, and fights with her boyfriend. She goes to visit Momo and talks to him about her frustrations. She asks him how to apologize to Theo in French, and Sumire tells Theo how to say 'cheer up!' in Japanese. Hasumi goes back to Tokyo and reminisces about going to college with Sumire, making his peace with the past. He proposes to Fukushima.
^ abOgawa, Yayoi (13 February 2008). "The History of Tramps Like Us - Complete Chronology of Tramps". Tramps Like Us. Vol. 14. Tokyopop. ISBN978-1-59816-876-1.
^「きみはペット」 (in Japanese). TBS. Retrieved 2009-08-14.