Selena Gomez Revealed the Sweet Meaning Behind Her Matching Tattoo With Cara Delevingne

Getting matching tattoos is rarely a meaningless, casual endeavor, and it certainly wasn’t for Selena Gomez and Cara Delevingne. 

In late December, the Bang Bang NYC Instagram account debuted Gomez’s newest ink: a watercolor rose dripping down her back like wet paint. It was stunning, noteworthy work on its own, but the tat was made all the more special a few days later when it was revealed to be part of a matching set. On December 30, the same studio shared that Gomez’s Only Murders in the Building costar Delevingne received an almost identical version of the artwork on her ribcage. 

“Matching for @caradelevingne. I had so much fun making these tattoos—thanks for always trusting me Cara,” celebrity tattoo artist Keith Scott captioned the post at the time. “Fyi I didn’t tell them til the end that these were my first watercolor tattoos ever.” 

Here is the tattoo on Gomez:

And on Delevingne: 

Now, in a recent interview with Live With Kelly and Ryan, Gomez is opening up about the meaning behind the matching ink. “It means a couple of different things,” the actor said, per Billboard. “Cara [is] one of my best friends that I’ve known for [a long time]. I was maybe 16 when I met her. She calls me ‘Rosebud.’ So, it’s a nickname. I’ve always wanted a rose and now I got one and I love it.”