Not an expert but am a decent observer.
If you have a good friend, dating them puts extra pressure on the relationship you already have. Instead of a date, you may chose to hang out together with no undue pressures that come from a date.
If you are at ease with each other and you have a good foundation you can slowly mature the relationship but don't break it by putting pressure on that foundation. Sometimes a good friend is what someone needs in stead of a steady boyfriend/girlfriend.
How do you know she will say yes to a date. Casual conversation seems to be the best measuring stick.
while you speak,
Do they look away much?
Fiddle with thier hair or small objects?
Talk with other people that pass by while you are communicating?
If so you may want to better get in tune with this person by seeing if they will share a little bit of thier background with you, thier likes and disklikes and above all share your background with them. Hiding who you really are will just make you more anxious as the relationship goes along.
My current love is the first one I got really serious about even though a few that I could have gotten crossed my path. My main reason was I wanted someone that would accept me for me and not look to change who I am. Some of the people I had to pass up on were not bad catches but they needed something that I was not and it was best that they searched until they found what they needed.
Good luck.
Wasting CPU Cycles since the 286 was a hot machine.