Getting the courage

This might be a long post, but I would much appreciate it if people could hear me out: I met an amazing girl in my course with whom I frequently tried to have conversations with in the beginning of the schoolyear. However, I realised that she is not even remotely interested in what I have to say - but she was still nice to me. She frequently smiles and just nods, but doesn't really engage in the conversation. To make the matters worse, one of her friends noticed that I was interested in her and decided to tell her himself, which made the situation so much more awkward than it has to be. As a result, I can't seem to get the courage to talk to her. When I try to talk to her or when she asks me a question, I give a half-assed mumbled response because at the back of my mind, I know she realises that I fancy her. What makes it even more difficult is the fact that we have mutual friends that we hang out with. Because of the awkwardness, I now avoid social gatherings because I fear that I might screw up when I try to talk to her. I fancy her quite a bit, but can't seem to get the courage to talk to her anymore. I'm not the best when it comes to expressing my feelings, but I don't want to screw this one up! It would be much appreciated if you guys could help me out on this situation - how do I get courage to talk to her again, and not to make things awkward? Many thanks in advance.

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