Make Friends

So at 4pm I met with my language partner or 语伴 (yu ban or to Beijing locals pronounced yu bar) which isn't normal. Normally we meet at 7pm but there's a performance celebrating the 50 year anniversary and she wanted to go. We spent our usual hour previewing the lesson I'm learning tomorrow and then afterward I went to the 4th floor to write the characters or 汉字 (han zi) and do homework (作业 or zuo ye). I get up there and get out my little booklet and start writing the characters for Chocolate Chip Frappe. I figured I'd go back to my dorm and check them on my computer and be able to say it later but today I would show it to the cashier so he knew what I wanted (I found out last week this cashier can't understand English). As I was writing a guy who worked there approached me and asked me what I was doing. I forgot the people there were really protective of their menu and so I explained quickly (because he spoke English) that I was writing it down so I could learn it. He offered to write the characters and even wrote the pinyin for me!
巧克力豆冰乐 - qiao ke li dou bing le. If I translate literally it means chocolate (巧克力) bean (豆) ice (冰) happy (乐)
and it did make me happy

It actually tasted almost exactly like the Starbucks double chocolatey chip frappecino but not as many chocolate chips.
Anyway, so I was there about 2 hours and finally finished my work. I actually talked to Theo who reminded me I still had an essay to do (Doh!) and I left planning on getting some bao zi (包子）to take with me back to my dorm at the cafeteria below. At the elevator however I met a guy. I was trying to decide whether or not I wanted to wait or just walk down the stairs and he seemed to think I was confused or something. Anyway, I managed to understand he was asking me if I was studying Chinese which I confirmed. He then kept talking to me in Chinese and I could just barely understand (I think) that he wanted to practice English with me and then help me with my Chinese. I told him I had a 语伴 but he just kept asking "可以吗?" (literally "may/can?") so I finally just said "可以." When we got outside he kept talking and trying to ask me things and finally  I got him to understand that I needed him to speak slower. He tried but he was still using words I didn't understand. He started typing on his phone and I thought I'd figured out he wanted to discuss a time when Rebecca, Kate, Erin, and Devin showed up! I immediately asked for their help because I had no real clue what he wanted. They did the best they could but for a second it sounded like he wanted to "rest with me" and Erin was like "nope! bu hui! (不会 or can't)" and I just said what is practically my tagline now
对不起，我的中文不好。(sorry, my Chinese isn't good)
and left with them. Then they started asking me "Who was that? So he was just some random guy? Why were you talking to him?"
And I said "Well, they said we need to make friends!"
And they all were like "Not with random guys!"
Yeah, it probably wouldn't have been a good idea. If he could have spoken any English he would have done it much sooner and I don't understand enough Chinese to understand what English he wanted and he clearly didn't know how to talk to someone who barely understands the language.
Still, they said make friends.
Can't say I'm not trying, man.