You may have found that your friend has all of the qualities in a partner that you have been looking for and now you don't know what to do with those feelings. It can be awkward when you realize that you have feelings for someone that has always been "just a friend". Where do you go from here?

The first thing you need to do is decide if you are going to share your feelings with your friend. While many say that a man and a woman cannot just be friends, your friend may be able to see you like this. You need to determine if you are willing to risk your friendship to possibly have a romantic relationship. Unless you are certain that your friend feels the same way, you run the risk of making them uncomfortable.

Not only do you have to worry about how your friend will feel when you tell them how you feel, you also have to worry about whether or not you want to risk the friendship for a chance at a relationship. If you pursue a relationship and it doesn't work out, you may not just be losing a romantic interest, you may be losing a friend, is that worth it?

If you decide to go for it, you may find that changing from being just friends to being romantic partners is interesting. Generally we share a lot more of our baggage with friends than we would ever share with someone we were dating. You have to be comfortable with the fact that your friend has seen the best and the worst of you, and vice versa, and you may have to work hard not to hold these things against one another or use it when you are angry or hurt.

Dating a friend can be a really good thing because the comfort level is already there. It will be a different experience dating someone that you already know so well, but it could also be a lot of fun. Just take it as it comes and always remember to take care of your friend who is now your romantic interest, you liked them before you started dating so you owe it to them to take who they are and their needs into consideration. If you do this, even if things don't work out, you will have a better chance of having a friendship after your romantic relationship.