@gentlenekomata / continued:
?!!??!?!!?!?
what? nooooooo. nononono no. that's NOT what he meant!!! argh!!! ahhhh!!!!!! NO!!! NO!!!!!!
try as he may to keep from squirming, there's no helping the uncomfortable grimace that pulls back his lips, or the way in which his cheeks suddenly flush with a heat that travels to the tips of his ears. "uh, that's...! ahem." shiro coughs, but it's too late. the damage has been done. there's no salvaging this. he's already feeling plenty awkward. "idon'tevenknowher!"
strange, isn't it? that he can easily stomach teasing from friends—it's different with them! they know him well enough to realize when to back off, and know which lines can and can't be crossed. but family? (one he's still getting to know?) that's a different story altogether. so here lies the uncomfortable truth to be stomached: that even after the war, they're still strangers with things to learn about the other, and woe be the smallest misstep that might lend itself to a blunder.
(not to mention, he gets the sense that his aunt might actually be serious about this.)
what else to do, then, but to deviate? parry the blow as one does in combat? harmless momentum. subtle enough not to offend. it's worked for him before—surely it'll do the trick again. "haha. maybe later? i mean, we're still hanging out!" for some reason, he hasn't got the heart to tell her that he's flat-out not interested. "...and your dress! that's a SUPER nice dress you've got on, auntie sakura. y'know what'd really go with it?"
shiro fumbles with his bouquet for a second to retrieve one of his white tulips, handing it over with an expression he's sure wouldn't be befitting of any so-called pure-bred royal who knows a thing or two about a regal composure. "this! take it! it's all yours!"
