It's not always practical to go directly to the surface in anything less than an emergency, due to strong currents or sea conditions. A alternative plan is to meet at the touch-down point, and wait a reasonable time before ascending. There's a much better chance that you'll find your buddy and a free ascent won't be necessary.
While I agree that would be a good plan for such a situation, it needs to be communicated prior to the dive. A bad plan shared among two dive buddies is generally still better than two dive buddies with two different plans. Changing the dive plan mid-dive (as in the OP's case) results in the latter.