[JohnHenry]

This is going to be a little long.
Somehow i dont feel this is the typical friend zone problem, but im not sure. Ive known this girl for a long time, we were in college together but we never were more than just schoolmates and we really never fitted the friends description because we rarely talked more than we needed to, but we where always friendly to each other. After graduation we stopped seeing each other for more than a year.
Then we started working together. At this point is when we started to actually become friends, but i had her in the friends category for a long time, because i never actually felt anything for her, she is not my physical type and to be honest ive never found her atractive. She is not ugly but she is not a beauty in the traditional sense.We became better acquaintances and we can now be considered friends, but we are not best friends yet. Recently something hit me, i started seeing her more attractive, my perception of her changed , then I realized i was in love with her, but i wasnt sure where did i stand in the whole scheme of things, i mean, i didnt landed in the friend zone trying to be something more, it just happened.
She is shy, but a funny type of shy. She is shy and outgoing at the same time. She somehow overcompensates her shyness with behavior that seems too outgoing or bold, but somehow, fake. She doesn't have much experience in relationships and looks like shes been hurt, so maybe this explains that shield.It looks like she is afraid to depend on a relationship, and is lazy about it. She finds a way to get her attention in other things and not really bother about them but deep down she is a romantic and it shows if you know where to look. She doesn't take it kindly when strangers try to pick her up and even some friends she tells me they try to hit on her and that she doesn't like it. Not sure if this counts as talking about other guys, because actually they never achieve anything with her, and this topic is not comfortable for her, so we seldom talk about other guys, at least when its only the two of us. She acts like a kid most of the time she is with me and thought i like this i don't know how can i act around it.
I think im on a stage where if i dont make a move i could be in the friend zone stuckm but im not sure, because she looks like the type of girl that likes to take it veeery slowww. I ve decided that i want to risk the friendship, but not sure if its the right time or maybe because she is not the average girl, pressing for an answer may actually be bad for me. i dont know, Im used to less complicated girls and i dont have a problem seducing them, but this girl came out of the blue,and even thought she is not as pretty as the other girls i could easily date, i cant take her out of my mind and she is the only one who has made me feel something more than just sexual attraction. I need advice, I really dont know what to do. Thanks