It’s been about two years since I fell into the tianami pit and began working on OTHERSIDE. Life’s gotten in the way of my working on it, but I still love the story and ship. 🥰
I think that we, as a society, forgot about this ship a little too soon. These two were created for each other. Like, they compliment each other so well it's insane. They're both mature, hard-working (overworked), caring characters. I can't believe I didn't come up with this myself. Whoever brought Tianami to light is a genius fr.
Don't mind me rambling. Boy period has me feeling reminiscent and Nanami is my comfort character.
Even their ship name is perfect. Tianami?? Tell me you wouldn't name ur bby that bc I would 😭😭
No shade to Naveen bc that's been my husband but these two??
Tiana paused her fingers, which had been tapping on the nimble keys at a breakneck pace, and closed her eyes. She let out a heavy sigh, pursing her lips, as she pushed away from her desk. She rolled on the tile to see Nanami standing there, poised in the tan suit she had pressed this morning, the creases still prominent on the legs and cuffs. He had a manila folder tucked under his arm, and a black, leather briefcase in the other. To any worker who passed by, everything seemed rather normal; a professional and rather boring interaction.
But when Nanami came down here to see Tiana, the exchange was anything but.
Tiana’s palms began to sweat, so she placed them on her lap, rubbing her condensating palms on the fabric of her skirt.
“Yes, Mr. Kento?” She kept her face as neutral as possible, warmth creeping up her neck. Nanami kept the same stoicism he always displayed as he spoke.
“Can you come to my office for a quick briefing? We have three new interns.” He shuffled the items in his hands for a moment, peering at her through his glasses. “It shouldn’t take long.”
“Y-Yes, of course.” Tiana stands abruptly, knocking over her cup of stationary items. Fretting, she picks them up, placing them back in their holder. Smoothening out her clothes, she clicks her way to the door, and out of her office. Nanami gives an airy chuckle behind her, following her to the elevator.
While Tiana worked on the 3rd floor, Nanami’s office was at the top; all the way at the 30th. Often, Tiana would be summoned there, mostly by Nanami, and most times the reason he called her was absolute bullshit.
Because Nanami, 9 times out of 10, just needed a reason to have his lips on hers.
Tiana wasn’t sure if Nanami got some sort of adrenaline rush because of the prospect of getting caught, or if he was flexing the fact that he could call her anytime he wanted to and it was her job to answer. Either way, it was very rare for Nanami to request her presence and actually have a task for her to complete, so she wasn’t sure if he was being serious this time or not.
So many times, Tiana had been pressed against the wall of the building's stairwell, soft giggles echoing in the dark. Nanami even invested in blinds for his office’s glass windows for more privacy, so no one walking by could question why he was making out with Tiana on his desk. Lunch dates on the roof would have a flurry of kisses waiting for dessert, Tiana mushing his face away before he could pounce on her. She was always fending herself off from his loving attacks, not just because she felt one peck away from combusting, but there were eyes everywhere. If the wrong person caught them, Tiana’s career would be in more danger than Nanami’s, and even then, she didn’t want to be a blemish on his track record. She tried to compromise after work, allowing Nanami to go to town on her lips, but it never seemed to satiate the poor man.
She’d be lying if she said she hated it, but there just had to be a limit.
She sighed as she pressed the button on the elevator to go up, the doors sliding closed. The metal room lurches as she stands on one side of the elevator, and Nanami on the other; a respectable distance between the two. She folds her arms, leaning on the wall, listening to the low hum of the light illuminating the box.
Nanami’s arm moves in her peripheral vision as he steps extremely close, and she flinches, her eyes squeezed shut as she awaits the onslaught of smooches.
Instead, she feels something rake through her hair.
“Now, how did that get there?”
Tiana opens her eyes to see Nanami holding a silver paperclip, the man examining it as if it were the latest human discovery. Tiana flushed, averting her eyes as she leaned back on the wall, hoping to melt into it.
His actions had infected her brain.
“Ms. Baker?" Nanami called, and Tiana swore she could hear a slight laugh in his voice. The way he called her last name sent a tingle down her spine, so she rolled her shoulder to get the feeling off of her.
“Yes?”
“Are you feeling alright?”
For some reason, she was feeling disappointed.
“Peachy.” She said instead.
When the elevators opened on the 30th floor, Nanami walked out first, Tiana trying her best to shrink into his shadow. When they arrived at his office, to Tiana’s surprise, there were people actually waiting there. People who were all too familiar to her.
“Megumi?” Tiana voices her surprise, having not seen the teen since the award show. The spiky-haired boy rubs the back of his neck, almost bashfully as his two friends stand next to him shocked.
“What about me?” The pink-haired one pointing to himself with a tilted head. “Do you remember me?”
“Of course she doesn’t, you’re not memorable.” The brown haired girl says, flipping her bob with a smirk.
“Huh?!” the boy exclaims, clearly offended. Tiana just gives a nervous smile.
“I’m sorry,” She admits with embarrassment, “Your names have slipped my mind. I’m sorry to disappoint you.”
“Ms. Baker,” Nanami interrupts, gesturing to the children. “You’ve met Megumi. This is Nobara-”
“Hi!”
“-and Yuji.” Nanami concludes. Yuji grabs Tiana’s hand, bowing his head like a knight awaiting his queen’s commands.
“O-Oh?” She says nervously, eyes darting to Nanami. Despite the same emotionless face, Nanami’s eyes held a devious squint.
Megumi smacks Yuji in the back of the head, giving Tiana an apologetic look. “Stop harassing her.”
“But she’s just my ty-!”
“Focus.” Nanami cuts in, arms folded as he glared down at the children. Like soldiers, they straighten up, standing at attention with looks of determination.
“Yes, sir!” Nobara and Yuji shout with passion, as Megumi stands with a grimace.
“I think you remember these three from the award show.” Nanami says, directing the conversion to Tiana while still keeping a keen eye on the children. “Well, they did so well that they were asked to return. But instead of speaking with Gojo-” Nanami turns to Tiana, his eyes soft.
“They requested to speak with you.”
Tiana doesn’t know why, but her heart scrunches slightly, her hands balling up her skirt. They wanted to speak with her of all people?
“They want to try something new.” Nanami explained. “And they wanted another perspective. Gojo can be…a lot sometimes.”
“I didn’t want to hear his mouth for another semester.” Megumi said through a clenched jaw. “And wherever I go, these fools are bound to follow.”
“Hey!” Nobara barks, their formation crumbling as Yuji looks at his friend.
“If you think you’re going to hang out with pretty office ladies all day-”
“Yuji.” Nanami warns, and Tiana swallows her laugh.
“Then you’ve got another thing coming.” Nobara finishes. Nanami just sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“Well,” Tiana takes the reins, “Thank you, really. I am truly honored.” She gives a slight bow. “But I’m not sure how much help I can be. My position is quite…unique.” Tiana cuts her eyes at Nanami, who clears his throat. “I think it would be better to continue your tutelage under someone with more credentials, and a higher position so that I don’t waste your youth. But if you have any questions, feel free to stop by my office at any time.” Tiana smiles with a tilt of her head. The three children look at her with dewy eyes, irises shining.
“Wow.” Yuji sniffles, rubbing at his eyes. “Beautiful and humble.”
“So cool.” Nobara joins in, her eyes sparkling.
“You guys are ridiculous.” Megumi mutters, looking away.
Tiana chuckles, and Nanami gives another tired sigh. But underneath his quiet demeanor, Tiana saw an inkling of pride.
After chatting for a minute, and catching up, Tiana voiced her need to get back to work. Reluctantly, the kids left to roam the building, and Tiana and Nanami were back in the elevator, the metal doors sliding closed.
Tiana sighs through her nose, a small smile on her lips. Then, as gentle as a ray of sun warming her skin, she felt a soft peck on her temple.
“You did good.” Nanami hummed, one of his hands running through her curls. Tiana looked up at him, dimples prominent in her cheeks, and Nanami found himself kissing those too.
“Ken-” Tiana whispered, but her words were stolen by his soft lips, and Tiana allowed it.
Ding!
The two jump apart as the elevator lurches to a stop, Nanami sidestepping to the opposite side of the elevator as Tiana stood near the buttons. As the doors slide open, Tiana turns to the wall, her breath catching in her throat. She bites her cheek, worrying at her lip as the chatty workers who entered clicked their respective floors, the doors gliding closed. A few voiced their enthusiasm for finally getting to see Nanami “in the flesh”, pitching themselves like products and ideas for the few seconds they had with him. But when Tiana looked over from her corner, Nanami’s intense gaze was still on her, her cheeks growing ever warmer.
The elevator inches down slowly, almost painfully as Tiana becomes overly self-conscious. The voices blur, and ultimately quiet as people exit one by one, until it was just them again. Tiana looked at the digital board that indicated the floor number, watching it creep at a snail's pace.
22…21…20…19…
Nanami’s pointer finger curls under her chin, turning her head to his, completely engulfing Tiana’s mouth like a man starved. Surprised, Tiana backs into the wall, her back clacking against the elevator buttons, their beeps muffled by her clothes.
Nanami nips at her flesh, hands cupping her cheeks, thumbs resting under her eyes and stroking her face gently. Tiana mewls into his mouth as he presses his body closer, her head knocking against the wall. As if to prevent anymore needless thuds, one of Nanami’s hands cradles to back of her head, as the other-
“Nana-!”
His other hand devilishly trails down the length of her spine, rounding the curve of her ass. Her skirt rose up her thigh, her supporting foot threatening to wobble in its thin heel.
“Ken…”
Tiana’s soft protests are ignored as the kiss grows more aggressive, Nanami's pelvis pressing into hers, along with another visitor pressing against her lower abdomen.
“Stop…!”
Tiana feels the elevator slow, yet Nanami doesn’t abandon his pace. A strong hand hooks under her knee, pulling them closer together, while Tiana’s hands splay flat on his chest to push them farther apart.
“Enough!”
Ding!
Tiana tore Nanami from her lips like velcro. The two barely have time to move, Nanami trying his best to stand up straight as Tiana stays on the wall, trembling as they both stilled their breaths, failing to look inconspicuous.
“Ahem.”
Tiana cringes away, unable to look at whomever stepped on the elevator, instead finding solace in the palms of her hands as she pressed them into her face. She wanted to die. Just melt into the wall and die. Her future flashed before her eyes. If she could just die right now-
“You’re lucky it’s me and not someone else.” Geto murmurs, and Tiana feels her knees go weak with relief. She leans her head back, sending thanks to the heaven above, as Nanami leans his head on her shoulder, giving a shaky exhale.
“I’m sorry.” Nanami murmured.
“Well, don’t just suffocate the poor woman.” Geto said, waving at the two. He then points to the opposite side of the elevator. “Give her some space and bask in your shame.”
Like a child being reprimanded and put in time-out, Nanami begrudgingly walks to the other corner with his head down. His hair was tousled, his shirt and tie wrinkled, and his glasses had fogged. His lips were swollen, and cheeks as red as newly laid bricks. Tiana regained her composure, standing opposite of Nanami with her hands folded in front of her in a polite manner, but she couldn’t help but worry about how unkempt she looked at the moment. She fretted at her clothes, and brushed a few curls from her damp forehead.
This was so embarrassing.
Geto stood in the middle of the two, giving Nanami a once over, before giving a disappointed look.
“Going up?” Geto said to the blonde, his brow raised. Somehow the red in Nanami’s cheeks darkened to maroon as he folded his hands in front of his crotch. Tiana’s wide eyes darted to the side, unable to look at anyone, instead admiring the detailing on the wall.
“Is that condensation on the walls?”
Yep. Super embarrassing.
Later that night, Tiana put her foot down despite Nanami’s begging; no more office kisses on the clock, unless Nanami wanted to spend his time off the clock alone. And in hope of teaching Nanami some patience, she ultimately doomed herself to their time at home, never having a moment where they weren’t conjoined at the lip.
