Language Partner?

A while back I met up with some expats at an American bar.  One of these gentlemen (to use the word loosely), asked me if I'd yet found a "language partner."  To say the least, he was disappointed when I told him no, that I hadn't found one just yet, and left his premature high five hanging embarrassingly in the air.  I felt badly, actually, since I could tell he was really looking forward to hearing about and congratulating me on my conquests.  I tried to bolster my waning reputation with a story about Ayi (the maid), but for whatever reason that did not quite cut the mustard.

However, just yesterday the winds of change seemed to blow straight through Beijing and into my simple life here.  It was 中秋节 (the Mid-Autumn Festival), and I went to the supermarket to buy some moon-cakes, tea, and some school supplies that I needed for class.  As I was examining the notebooks (an activity on which I can easily squander a entire day's valuable time), a girl approached me and said "你好!" (nihao; hello).  We wound up having a conversation about pens, ink, and the art of writing the Chinese character. 

After helping me select the proper supplies, which included a fountain pen, a child's character tracing book, and a notepad, she asked if I had any plans that evening.  I said no in hopes of making some actual Chinese friends.  Sure enough, she asked if I wanted to go to the soccer field down the road and learn how to use nun-chucks.  Strange, but, hey, what the hell, I thought, why not?  We exchanged names and numbers. (Her name was Yufeng, or shining phoenix.)  I bought her a moon-cake, and we agreed to meet at 5-ish to walk over to the field.

I actually wound up being quite adroit with nun-chucks, so much so that the other nun-chuck practitioners did not believe that I hadn't handled them before.  I chalked it up to playing a lot of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on my Super Nintendo when I was younger.  They didn't know what I was talking about, much like when Ayi didn't know what I was talking about when I asked her how to translate the name of the supreme leader of a rogue foreign nation.  In other words, I'm used to it.

As night fell, Yufeng and I walked towards home.  Neither of us spoke until finally she broke the silence, "You know when two people walk together and no one speaks, they usually have something on their mind."  In fact, Chinese uses "心" (a pictograph of the heart) to mean both heart and mind.  I asked her what was on her mind/heart, but she replied that it was not an easy thing to say.  Fearing the worst and hoping to avoid a potentially awkward situation (although that ship had sailed), I told her that perhaps it was best to think it over and tell me next time.  We left it at that and went our separate ways.

Today, she called me twice, both of which times I did not answer.  Finally, she sent me a message:  "I would like us to be boyfriend and girlfriend."  When I read it, for whatever reason I thought of the guard at the door of the Emerald City in Oz... "The notice!! It's on the door -- as plain as the nose on my face!!"  Of course she wants to be my girlfriend!

I pored over my dictionary for hours looking for the right words... finally I replied, "We've only just met.  Wouldn't you like to just be friends for now?"  As I hit send, I thought again of my fratty expat friend at the American bar asking me if I'd found a "language partner."  I could see the look of utter despondency on his face at the thought of my passing up such an easy opportunity.  I mean, really, by any standards this one was a layup.

But still I maintain I've done the right thing.  After all, she really did just meet me, and G-d help anyone who still wants me after date number two...