Why’d he push you away during the buddy check?
Through an accident of fate and the original guide I'd booked getting sick, he was my guide on literally my first dives after getting certified.
He was like: "don't touch my equipment, try not to die, I'll be fine... what are you realistically going to do for me if there's a problem (and there won't be a problem)" ...after I explained that I was just trying to adopt the good habits we were taught in the classes I just took, he chilled out a bit, but still wouldn't let me touch his equipment.
My first open water dive (post certification) was unplanned- a small earthquake closed the cenotes on the second/third day until they could be vetted by "the pros" and make sure everything was safe for tourists again.
Ended up bumping into a shark (aka: "bear in the woods") at ~80ft and my (different) guide went chasing after it to take pictures, so I had to kindof keep up and think to myself: "I probably would stay away from that roughly human-sized shark, but also, I'm supposed to stay within 5-10 feet of my buddy in case he has equipment problems...... I'll just keep him in between me and the shark..."
Good times! :-D