Because if I’m gonna be the only one talking about them, I’m gonna make it everyone’s problem.
Their names are Vincent Heymann and Eric Vides ((names I’ve given them bc the manga doesn’t give them first names))
They were hired in the Finance department of City Hall around the same time that Yor was hired.
Because of that they’re actually pretty friendly with Yor
At one point, during a work dinner Vides got a little too drunk and he let it slip to Heymann that he was gay
Heymann didn’t know how to react so he pretended he didn’t hear anything
Things got awkward between them for a while because Heymann had never known a gay person before
Vides one day asks Heymann why he’s been so stiff around him
Heymann tells Vides that he knows his secret and Vides asks if he doesn’t want to be his friend anymore (he knows that being homosexual in Berlint wasn’t common and it was generally looked down upon, so he wouldn’t push to be Heymann’s friend if he wasn’t okay with it)
Heymann tells him that he just doesn’t know how to act around him
Vides says he doesn’t need to act at all. “I’m just a person, same as you. I’m just not attracted to women.”
Vides breathes a long, heavy sigh. “It’s okay. I get it. Thank you for never telling anyone else, I really appreciate it. Starting tomorrow we can just be colleagues. I won’t invite you out anymore. You don’t have to wait for me during our lunch break… We can just… greet each other at work, be polite, no more, no less, yeah?”
Heymann’s heart sunk. He couldn’t fathom why. Or maybe he could. They’d gotten hired at City Hall around the same time and quickly became good friends. It’s been years since then.
He was losing his best friend to some prejudice he was raised with. Even if Vides liked men, he had never… pursued him, or acted unsightly. He was right, Vides was just another person. A very kind one, at that.
When Heymann didn’t say anything, Vides took it as his cue to leave.
“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, Heymann.”
It sounded like an ending. He sounded torn.
‘We’re back on a last name basis,’ Heymann thought to himself. And before he could think about what he was doing, he followed Vides.
“Wait! Eric! Wait, please. Just—Just give me some time.”
They stay friends, though for a few months things are rocky at best. Heymann is a little too careful around Vides.
Vides decides he was going to show Heymann what being gay was like, by introducing him to his partner(s), inviting him out to gay bars, and even introducing him to some queer friends. To try to solidify in Heymann’s mind that queer people are just people.
It works. Heymann begins to understand. He begins to enjoy the company of Vides’ friends. And eventually, they’re back to being best friends like they were before Heymann found out about Vides.
