see, i’d say this. you’re already using words like “coward” and “chicken”, implying that you are already annoyed at yourself for being afraid. this is a huge contribution to self-hate in the future. if you do eventually walk up to her, you could try to get to know her without even being too obvious about liking her, until you do want to tell her. That is a far better idea than not even getting to know her. i’m telling you, it’s better to just be basic friends than to not even know her well