TJ Ashford is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. The role was originated in 2012 by Krys Meyer when TJ was introduced as the troubled teenage son of Shawn Butler (Sean Blakemore)'s deceased best friend, Tommy, whom Shawn had killed in combat. The rebellious teenager attracts the attention of the good girl Molly Lansing (Haley Pullos). The two start dating in secret and Molly's mother Alexis Davis (Nancy Lee Grahn) initially disapproves of the romance but she and Shawn eventually let the teens continue to see each other. In 2013, the couple splits because of TJ's jealousy over Molly's friendship with Rafe Kovich (Jimmy Deshler). After Rafe's interference and TJ's one-night-stand with Taylor DuBois (Samantha Logan), the couple reconciles. In 2014, TJ's estranged mother Jordan (Vinessa Antoine) arrives and TJ starts college in the fall. He struggles to rebuild his relationship with Jordan, and eventually does, but disapproves of her lying to him.