In fact, the worst she can say is not “no.”
She can make you a social pariah and ruin your entire life. Fairly common among women just for asking them out politely.
Also, a lot of women believe that if any guy is friends with you, and is later attracted to you, he became friends with you just to attempt to sleep with you.
Ladies, this is FUCKING MORONIC. You’re being a clownish idiot by believing that.
Strangely, it is possible (and common) to befriend someone and after getting to know them, become attracted to them. Even if you don’t act on it, it’s still true! It has happened to me. A woman friend I had 0.0% attraction to at first after I got to know how sweet and fun she was, I later was attracted to her. It happens!
That women think this is absolutely impossible is fucking mystifying.