You don't RC everytime, at least you don't have to. Sometimes you get lucid way before you RC. That's because your awareness gives you lucidity, not the RC. If you say you knew you were dreaming, that is a lucid dream. Why do you think you were not lucid?

It's possible to have a dream and to know that and think that you are lucid, but the "aha" moment never comes. Those dreams are called False lucids. They happen, when we think about becoming lucid so often in waking life, that we dream about it. These false lucids are more related to regular, non-lucid dreams then to lucids. But you can have more awareness in false lucids, then in normal dream. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference.

But the only requirement for a dream to be lucid is for a dreamer to know that he is dreaming, while in a dream. And I think what you had was a DILD. Since you fell asleep, then had a dream and then realized you are dreaming.