“ | I've been unhappy in my marriage and I've been trying to figure out why. And maybe it's because... all this time, I've been living a lie. I did have those feelings for you, back in high school. And I've been denying them ever since. And maybe that's been the problem this whole time. You know... what if I'm gay? | ” |
— Tess comes out to Stef
|
Tess Bayfield is the wife of Dean Bayfield until they separated and the mother of Logan Bayfield. She was Stef Foster's high school best friend and crush. Tess was first mentioned in the early seasons of the series and made her first physical appearance in Exterminate Her.
Tess is portrayed by Kristen Ariza.
Biography[]
Throughout high school, Tess was best friends with Stef Foster, and the two were extremely close. They would often sleep over in each other's rooms, share a bed, scratch each other's backs, cuddle on couches while watching television, and talk for hours in the car. Unbeknownst to Tess, Stef was struggling with her sexuality and wanted to come out as a lesbian.
Stef liked Tess as more than a friend, and one day, when Stef's father Frank found the two girls cuddling on the couch downstairs, he was so angry that he sent his daughter to church. After Stef was sent to the church, the two girls never really spoke again, which was due to Stef pushing Tess away in an attempt to suppress her feelings for her.
Tess never understood why Stef stopped talking to her and had assumed that it was because she had made new friends. Tess unknowingly reciprocated Stef's romantic feelings, but repressed them in an attempt to be the woman she thought she should be.
Physical Appearance[]
Series[]
Appearances (9/101)[]
Season 5 (9/22)
- Exterminate Her
- Contact
- Telling
- Chasing Waterfalls
- Prom
- Hashtag IWasMadeInAmerica
- Line in the Sand
- Mother's Day
- Giving Up the Ghost
Trivia[]
- Tess was the first girl Stef ever had a crush on.
- She is left-handed.
- It wasn't until she moved next door to Stef that Tess started questioning her sexuality once again.
- Tess had a brief fling with Jenna Paul, a friend of the Adams Fosters.