When Jeff Was Talking To Callie About How Lonely It Is To Be Shauna's Husband I Realized That They Were

you ever just crave backshots from abby fucking anderson

an analysis on how abby growing up without a mom shaped who she is and her perception of femininity:

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Growing up without a mother meant her understanding of femininity, softness, and nurture came from absence. Without a maternal influence, she didn't have a guiding figure for emotional softness, or a role model for how to navigate vulnerability, especially in relationships. There was no one to show her how to be girly, no mother-daughter traditions, no one to teach her about motherhood. She probably doesn't even know her mother's favorite color or the sound of her laugh.

I don’t think it was something she resented, but it left an emptiness that Abby didn't quite know how to fill. She didn't have the maternal warmth or lessons that could help shape her understanding of her femininity or intimacy. Instead, her father's presence was both comforting and limiting, keeping her grounded but also confining her to a role she took on with no real guidance beyond her own instincts. Jerry did his best, but he wasn't necessarily equipped to teach her how to be delicate or to guide her through a nuanced understanding of herself as a woman.

Her dad was a gentle man, but also a bit carefree, often embarking on spontaneous adventures, leaving Abby to pick up the pieces and keep things running smoothly. She had to be responsible, mature beyond her years, and quickly became someone her father could rely on in ways that were far more profound than the typical parent-child dynamic. Abby had to grow into a caretaker role at a young age, though it came naturally to her, given that she was so deeply tied to her father's wellbeing. She still carried the weight of managing the practicalities of life in a way he didn't always feel compelled to. Because it was just the two of them, Abby's dad became her entire world - her role model, her compass, her constant. She inherited his pragmatism, his quiet humor, his hands-on way of showing love. But being raised by a single father meant Abby had to figure out her emotional world on her own. He was present, and loving, but not always expressive.

✮ This shaped how Abby expresses love: quietly, through action. Through showing up. Through fixing things, carrying the heavy load, remembering how you take your tea. Not because it was taught— but because it's how she learned to care.

Her relationship with femininity is self-defined. Without a maternal influence, Abby had to define her identity as a woman on her own terms. She doesn't perform femininity in conventional ways — and never felt pressured to. There was no one telling her to wear dresses or play with dolls, so she gravitated toward what felt good in her body. Sports. Climbing trees. Strength training.

Now, she finds beauty in the unexpected. She's not traditionally "girly," but she notices the details. She admires curves, softness, the kind of woman who owns her space — not because Abby feels lacking, but because she values what she didn't grow up around. It also makes her protective — of people who move through the world vulnerably, who offer gentleness without armor. She has a quiet reverence for that, like it's sacred. It made her pay close attention to the women around her. It's why she has so much respect for quiet strength, for softness that's chosen and not expected. She notices the small ways women hold space for each other — in friendship, in tenderness, in care — and sometimes finds herself wondering: Would my mom have done that? Would she have held my face in her hands when I cried?

Abby had to figure out a lot on her own, and she learned to keep most of her struggles to herself, fearing that her vulnerability might be too much for others to handle. There are parts of Abby she struggles to articulate because she never had the words growing up. It's why she turns to writing sometimes, and gets quiet when conversations shift too emotional too fast. Her grief isn't loud— it's woven into the fabric of who she is.

And yet, with the right person, she'd slowly find ways to let someone in. To speak about the silence. To share that old photograph. To admit, one night under the stars, "I don't know much about her... but I think you would've liked her. And I think she would've liked you, too."

In a partner, Abby would find someone who could teach her things her father couldn't, someone to balance out her tendencies to be over responsible and always holding things together. Offering Abby a softer, more emotionally open way to be, showing her that it was okay to sometimes not have all the answers, to let go of the burden of always being the one in control. A way for Abby to experience and understand the tenderness she had missed out on from her mother, forcing Abby to confront aspects of herself she had always kept at arm's length. Abby could begin to see herself differently, not just as the strong, reliable one, but as someone worthy of emotional care and tenderness, too once she allows herself to trust someone enough to soften.

wholesome / soft!abby learning how to do things simply because she loves you. (modern au) ✿

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It was late, just past midnight and the apartment had gone still. You had gone to bed an hour ago, after gently insisting Abby didn't need to stay up finishing the laundry.

But Abby had stayed up anyway.

Not because of laundry.

Because earlier that evening, while brushing your hair out after a shower, you had said offhandedly,

"I've always wanted to learn how to do a proper French braid, but I can never get the hand placement right."

You hadn't meant it as a request. Just one of those things people say when they're sleepy and relaxed, idly untangling their hair in the glow of lamplight.

But it had stuck in Abby's chest in that quiet, persistent way things did when they mattered.

And now she was sitting on the living room rug, her laptop open in front of her, a tutorial video paused on a smiling woman holding a mannequin head.

Abby's fingers were wrapped awkwardly around a sad-looking practice braid made from yarn she'd pulled out of an old craft box. Her brows were knit together in deep focus.

"Under, over... no-under again? Shit."

She rewound the video, watching the woman's hands again. Her own hands were big, too clumsy, and this yarn was too slippery, but she was determined. You deserved something soft.

Something delicate. Something that said, I listen. I care. I want to do this for you.

Eventually, after the third or fourth video and countless redos, she got the rhythm. Her fingers started to move with more confidence, more grace.

It still wasn't perfect, but it looked like something.

Like effort. Like love.

She stared down at the wonky braid, a quiet smile tugging at her lips.

A shadow appeared in the hallway- you, sleepy and wrapped in a blanket, blinking at the light.

"Abs? What are you doing?"

Abby froze. "I-nothing. Go back to bed."

You pad closer, crouching beside her and squinting at the yarn.

"..Is that a braid?"

Abby rubbed the back of her neck, sheepish. "I was... practicing. You said you never learned, so l thought-maybe I could. So I can do it for you."

You stared at her for a beat too long, eyes glassy with the kind of affection that makes your chest ache.

Then you leaned forward and kissed her-soft, sleepy, so full of warmth it almost hurt.

"You're ridiculous," you murmured against Abby's lips.

𓂃₊ ⊹

Later that same week, you walked into the living room to find Abby half-inside the laundry closet, surrounded by the scattered innards of the dryer.

"Should I be worried?" you asked, setting your keys down.

Abby's voice echoed from inside the machine.

"Only mildly. It was making that squeaky noise again. I watched like, five repair videos. I think it's just the belt."

You squint at her. "You hate mechanical stuff."

"Yeah, well. You said you hate calling repair guys even more." Abby slid out, grease smudged across her cheek. "Figured I'd try."

You crossed your arms, trying not to smile. "I’m starting to think you can fix anything."

Later that night, the dryer spun without a sound, just the hum of warm air and fresh laundry.

There were no grand declarations. No elaborate gestures.

Just glue, orbit wires, a silenced squeaky dryer, and the quiet, steady rhythm of loving someone by showing up - over and over again.

18+ smut.

Abby sexting is honestly the sweetest and simultaneously hottest thing to ever exist.

Because at first, she's so bad at initiating it. We're talking comically bad. This girl paces her apartment typing and deleting messages left and right. She's always been better at writing things down but for some reason, learning how to excite you over the phone feels intimidating. But once she trusts you, once she feels truly comfortable, it goes from painfully awkward to fucking devastating in a flash and there's no going back.

They start out slow. Shy. Just this side of flirtatious.

She might send you a selfie in front of a filthy ass mirror, phone angled low, her abs still tight and glistening with sweat from intense core work. One arm casually flexed like she's not deliberately showing off the vascularity in her forearm.

I did hip thrusts thinking about you.

You know that vein down my bicep you like? I made it pop for you today. Wanna see?

You looked really hot in my shirt last night. Just saying.

And somehow, over the course of a few brave conversations between you, this girl becomes a dedicated professional at ruining any chance in hell you have of focusing.

You're at the grocery store, the farmers market, the library... she is thoroughly enjoying making your entire body flush hot. Because at the end of the day, she adores her women with her whole body and soul. She wants to be the one who makes you feel alive.

She wants to remind you how much you mean to her.

How much she needs you.

You'd make such pretty noises if I dragged you into the shower right now.

You ever hear your own voice right before you come? It's the hottest fucking sound I've ever heard.

My hand's between my legs and it's not enough. Not when I know how good your mouth feels. Call me when you're alone, yeah?

But what you're not ready for, are the voicemails she drops on you like an audible aphrodisiac. Once she sees the effect her words have on you through text, she's obsessed with the thought of you laying cozily in the dark, one hand over your mouth, the other clutching your phone, just listening.

Maybe I shouldn't be doing this, but… I can't stop thinking about you. I'm in bed and I can still feel your gorgeous thighs on my shoulders. The way you sound when you're riding me. The way you taste. I swear to god, I'm losing my mind.

You're mine, you know that?

Even when we're apart, you're still mine.

Call me back.

God, her growth arc is so good.

Her freckles. Her nose bump. Her muscles.

cowboy abs! this is actually my fav piece ive done in like. forever.

just wanna mention that mel and owen were never “wife and husband” or even engaged either though. not sure where that narrative comes from. and he and mel hadn’t seen each other in weeks/months by the time the boat scene happened between him and abby, where he had her under the impression he was leaving mel.

🗣️: "...Abby’s bad because she 'stole' Owen from his wife and child"

but if you look at the characters so narrow-mindedly, here's what happens: Abby, Mel and Owen were childhood friends (information from the official artbook).

Mel was a close friend of Abby, which is confirmed in the note lies in Abby's backpack in the chapter "Zoo". moreover, Abby arranged for Mel to become an apprentice to her father, the best surgeon in Seattle, where she studied, and after Jerry's death she became a good doctor.

how did Mel repay? as soon as Abby started having a hard time, and her personality began to split due to an unbearable desire for revenge, when even her closest person ended a relationship with her, Mel... began a relationship with Owen. despite the fact the breakup was clearly not Abby's initiative, and she NEVER stopped loving Owen.

so Mel's bad, then? NOTHING LIKE THAT !

since Abby's relationship with Owen was over, and Abby clearly no longer focused on them openly (after the breakup, she started things in the gym much more, because what else could she do in her free time except read and train), why would Mel suddenly think abt Abby's feelings when she has her own?

it’s the same with Abby. continued to love Owen all the time, she felt disappointed and jealous, seeing that her lover listens so sensitively to Mel's "wishes" (decorating the aquarium for Christmas). with her trauma, which literally destroyed her personality, i’m sure she had some kind of hypersensitivity too. why was she obligated to think abt Mel at the moment when Owen first opened up to her completely, expressing everything that he had accumulated over the years?

i can talk abt Owen for a very long time. in the Christmas flashback at the aquarium (where, btw, he decorated all aquarium for Mel), he sincerely wanted to distract Abby from the desire for revenge, so that she would finally relax and live at least one evening without the thought that she needed to kill someone. it’s all just for Abby.

each of them is selfish. everyone thought first of themselves, and not abt any moral principles. just like real people do. and that's why i love tlou - the most "humanized" characters, which are incredibly interesting to analyze from each side.

i hope people will stop making scapegoats of Abby, Owen and Mel, and finally get into their stories 🙏🙏

getting called angel, baby, honey, pretty girl and sweet thing by abby anderson could fix me and my mommy issues i'm sure.

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stargazing with abby °*•.

i’m convinced abby has a telescope stashed in her room somewhere that she brings up to the roof of the stadium once in awhile. she’s been intrigued by astronomy ever since she found a book on it in the library. she can point out a bunch of constellations and the bigger stars, and her dad probably taught her how to navigate using them. she doesn’t get to do it all that often, but it takes her mind off things and soothes her when she wakes up in the middle of the night from her nightmares. she’d love to share this activity with someone special and point out all the elements of the night sky for them, babbling away like a huge nerd ᡣ𐭩

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bonus song because this one always reminds me of her. “your freckles lead the way, i trace your constellations”ᡣ𐭩

soft!abby supremacy! she’s the sweetest girl ever

details of ellie’s room (joel’s garage) and dina!