...and raising her interest level in me without seeming desperate...Is this possible? I have a hunch that I've been condemned to friendzone by this girl, probably more for the fact that I've took too long to realise it's her I want.
No.
sorry, but no
this happened to me once so i speak from experience
but rather than seeing this as something terminal, see it as a rite of passing, now you will never make this mistake again, ever
To add a level of complexity, some types of people are careful and don't enter a relationship until they have been "friends" for a while. This level of "friends" is apparently different than "just friends" that may exist in the "friendzone". These subtlies are probably indistinguishable from everyone but the coordinator and (and their friends) of this great hierarchy of courtship.