The only one who doesn't believe you can change is you. [ Akira's voice is firm as he says it. He knows that the rest of his friends may not particularly like Akechi -- he has a surprisingly high rate of killing their parents -- but they also see the same things that Akira does in him. Akechi seems to think that he's only one thing at a time: a calm lie of a detective prince, or a completely derailed and ruthless killer.

Akira thinks the truth, like with most things, lies somewhere in between that. ]

Even if... you don't change, and you go back to who you were before we met you. I still want you to have that chance.

[ Akira reaches out, carefully, and drops his hand onto Akechi's head. He doesn't really know how to give comfort to people, but Futaba's mom used to pat her on the head, and he thinks it's about all he can do without risking getting completely knocked away and probably off the seat at the bar. ]

I'll like you either way. [ Because the truth is that Akechi has already changed. That period of time in January -- that period that he clearly remembers -- he changed. He worked with everyone else, he supported everyone else. There was scathing commentary, sure, and a lot of maniacal laughter that Akira is pretty sure was at least partially an attempt to keep everyone at arm's length.

But he worked, for the future, for the good of everyone else, without a reason other than things being altered so much bothered him. He worked towards it knowing he'd die again.

Akechi is a better person than he gives himself credit for. ]