Farewell (Part 1)

He has been away for over a month (this phrase sounds like he will come back), but I still cannot remove his figure (figure is not the correct word to describe what you can't forget) from my mind. 

I had been trying (the verb tenese seems too conversational) to think of him as a good teacher, a lovely student and a sincere friend. But today what another teacher told me about him really accelerated the deterioration of his good image. (this sentence contradicts what you will write later) The teacher told me that when he lived in China, he drank every night and he would be drunk every single day. As a result, he couldn't get up in the morning. Also, he smoked too much, which I had known. (you know how in chinese, you like to speak sentences that have a certain rhythm; example, a same number of syllables? you should write in English the same way. Keep a rhythm to your list of things you don't like about him.) The most terrible thing was that he drove home, drunk, everyday. And the police found him many times...
I knew he was not perfect, but... (but what?) I still remember it when I first met him. He was in black, young and handsome. I was 15 and he was 22. He treated me with great polite (polite is not the correct word). Then I found with great surprise that he majored in English literature and we had so many common topics and interests! We talked about Frankenstein, Les Misrables, Lolita... He once joked that, ' You read Lolita in English and I read it in Chinese. 10 years later(not correct way to express hypothetical), we can exchange ideas!' And I also remember the scene that his face broke into a big smile to greet me. That was ... how to say, somewhat dazzling.
He did let me down.(not a new sentence) Once he had promised to come to my school but in the end he didn't appear. I was furious and felt rejected. But he apologized later and he helped me get through my speech competition. So I just chose to forgive him. (could be more smoothly written)
Then we became friends gradually. The other day I gathered my courage to ask if he wanted me to teach him Chinese (teaching him Chinese was not what you gathered your courage to do). He had already had a Chinese teacher but he still accepted it ("it" is not correct pronoun). We both bought the textbook online. During the process of Chinese learning, I knew he did try his best. He was really cute when he struggled with Chinese tones. He asked me how to distinguish with (not correct preposition) "睡觉“ and ”水饺". The pinyin is the same but the tones are different. Gradually he made progress. Sometimes (the way you switched to a new scene should be emphasized) I talked to others in Chinese, he would interrupt to ask something about what I was talking, which amazed me (why did this amaze you).
One day, he told me about what he conceived of  his future. He said he would go back to his university to continue his study in education. One day, he informed me of the good news that he was admitted again by his university with satisfactory.I believed him all because I wanted to believe.

Farewell (Part 1)

He had left China more than a month ago, but I still have not forgotten the indelible impression that he has left on my mind. I had tried to think of him as a good teacher of life, a lovely student, and a sincere friend, but he meant more than that. I knew he was not perfect. He drank every night, often missed morning classes, and smoked way too much for my taste. I had even heard that on more than one occasion, he had been arrested for drunk driving; but God, was he handsome!

I remember when I first met him. He wore all black, but had a smile which could light up a room. I was only 15 back then and he was 22 but he treated me with great respect. When I learned about his interest in English literature, I felt a great surprise because that meant we had so many, topics to discuss; especially in regard to the classics, such as Frankenstein, Les Miserable, Lolita, and other works of art. He once joked about the fact that I had read Lolita in English and he had read it in Chinese. We pinky swore that 10 years from now, we will meet and continue our discussions on these great book!

I will never forget the times when his face would break into a huge smile at the first site of me. These type of experiences helped me understand the true meaning of the word, dazzling. However, I do remember a time when he did let me down. He had promised to come to my school to help me with a project but never appeared. I felt furious and rejected, but after he apologized and he helped me get through another assignment, I chose to forgive him.

Gradually, we became good friends which gave me the courage to ask him if he wanted me to teach him Chinese. He had already had a Chinese teacher so I was afraid he would decline my offer. Luckily for me, he did not. He was really cute whenever he struggled with Chinese tones. Once, he asked me how to distinguish between "睡觉“and”水饺". The pinyin is the same but the tones are different. Eventually, he would make great progress.

The more time we spent together, the more I would come to understand how our futures would not be the same. He told me of his plan to return to American and continue his studies in education. On the day that he informed me that he was no longer on probation at his university and would immediately return to America, I didn't know what to believe. I just knew that I suddenly felt sad.