Studies socialist first and shows embarrassment (7)

I believe the answer is:

reddens

'shows embarrassment' is the definition.

'studies socialist first' is the wordplay.
'studies' becomes 'dens' (I've seen this before).
'socialist' becomes 'red' (red is a kind of socialist).
'first' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'dens' after 'red' is 'REDDENS'.

'and' acts as a link.

(Another definition for reddens that I've seen is " Blushes".)

I've seen this clue in The Mirror.

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