After Gomez penned a heartfelt tribute to Raísa on her 35th birthday in July, she  recalls feeling that ‘the universe decided this timing’ to bring them back together.

Revealing: Francia Raisa made a rare remark about how she and Selena Gomez managed to mend their friendship, earlier this year, after not speaking ‘much’ since 2017 (pictured in November 2017)

Ultimately, the Los Angeles native revealed that the Only Murders in the Building star, 31, ‘reached out and said, ‘Let’s talk.”

Over dinner, Raísa said they agreed they had ‘no beef, just salsa.’

‘We’ve never really had beef with each other. Nothing happened, and if you ask either of us, we don’t know what happened but we needed that time apart. Then when you come back together, you’re better people. She and I are still getting to know each other again,’ the Bring It On: All or Nothing alum insisted.

Raísa added: ‘And obviously, you know, I gave the girl a kidney so everyone felt a certain way.’

The performer noted that ‘for years and years and years’ that she’s been asked if she regretted donating her kidney to Gomez, who suffers from lupus.

‘No, the relationship has always been there,’ stated of her decision to be a living organ donor. ‘There was just a tiff.’

In October, Raisa spoke about their ‘rocky’ friendship to Extra while insisting the kidney transplant played no role in their spats.

Raisa made the life-saving decision to donate her kidney to Gomez, who at just 24 had suffered organ damage relating to her lupus diagnosis.

Looking back: During a new interview with USA Today , the How I Met Your Father star, 35, shed light on her past ‘tiff’ with the two-time Grammy nominee, 31, and taking some ‘time apart’ from each other to grow

There were rumors that Raisa felt as though she was ‘forced’ to go through with it and that she took issue with Gomez’s lifestyle choices following the transplant.

Tensions also flared last year when Gomez told Rolling Stone that Taylor Swift — not Raisa — was her only friend in Hollywood.

Though she admitted that their relationship is not ‘perfect,’ Raisa told the outlet that Gomez is like her ‘little sister’ and that they will never stop supporting one another.

She recalled meeting Gomez 16 years ago while they both starred on popular shows aimed at young audiences on ABC Family and Disney Channel.

‘When I was on ‘Secret Life of the American Teenager’… she was on ‘Wizards of Waverly Place.’ Disney had the stars of their shows go to Children’s Hospital and visit all the kids… She was in my group,’ she explained to Extra host Terri Seymour.

‘She came up to me and was like, “My mom had a teenage pregnancy, she was 16 years old, and we love your show.” I was like, “Oh my God thank you, I love your show.”‘

It was after this meeting that the pair started chatting on a regular basis, hanging out and getting to know one another. But it was the their mutual breakups that took their friendship to new heights.

‘It’s still crazy to me that people were invested in our friendship. … I don’t know why the timing happened the way it did, but I remember being in St. Tropez in June and I kept talking about her,’ the actress told the outlet. ‘We hadn’t spoken much in six years. Especially the last year, we didn’t speak at all’

Sweet: After Gomez penned a heartfelt tribute to Raísa on her 35th birthday in July, she recalls feeling that ‘the universe decided this timing’ to bring them back together

‘Around the time that my boyfriend and I broke up, and her and her boyfriend broke up, she called me and was like, “I am going through some stuff… I am going through a break up.”

‘I was like, “Girl, me too,” and we were just inseparable after that ever since.’

She said that she and Gomez ‘trauma bonded, which is beautiful, but also it can get rocky and tricky… People grow, relationships change.

‘I obviously I treat her like my little sister she treats me like her older sister… I don’t know any relationship that’s perfect… When our situation came up… No, I never pictured that, but obviously I never regretted it.

‘I am happy that we are here today celebrating and supporting each other.’

As for their ups and downs, Raisa believes that ‘sometimes I feel people need to spend time apart in order to grow’ and insisted that any issues she and Gomez did have had ‘nothing to do with’ the kidney transplant.

‘[Selena and I] had to almost go on our own journey and grow now I am really happy in my career now and my endeavor. I don’t know if I would be able to do that if I didn’t really take some time for myself and figure out what the hell was going on with me because I wasn’t ok.’

She added: ‘I am okay now and just for the record it had nothing to do with the kidney.

‘I went through a lot in my childhood and I will be talking about it very soon… She has been such a huge support through all of that.’

Now that both she and Gomez are in their 30s, Raisa said that they’re excited to ‘get to know each other again’ at this stage of their lives.

To close out the interview, she praised the Who Said singer for ‘bringing so much awareness’ to mental health through the Rare Impact Fund, a non-profit dedicated .

‘We have both seen each other go through so much. I am on my own journey of finally expressing myself and what I have gone through with my mental health…

‘I look to her to figure out how to even navigate all of this… Honestly, her sharing with the audience gave me the courage to start sharing with my audience.

Life-saving: Raisa donated her kidney to save the life of the Disney Channel star, 31, who at just 24 was suffering from organ damage relating to her lupus diagnosis

Raisa met Gomez in 2007 and they developed a tight bond, later attending a number of red carpet events together.

At the time of the kidney transplant in 2017, Gomez shared a photo of the two laying in hospital beds and sending cheerful glances towards each other.

Gomez publicly thanked her ‘for donating her kidney to me’ and expressed how ‘incredibly blessed’ she felt having found in a donor in her.

To honor Raisa’s incredible sacrifice, they each got the surgery date tattooed.

However, they had a precarious relationship in the years that followed, at one point feuding for months.

There were rumors that Francia was angry that Gomez was out partying after the transplant — with her father claiming earlier this year that ‘Francia told Selena that she didn’t give her the kidney so she could go out and drink.’

Tension: There were rumors that Francia was angry that Gomez was out partying after the transplant — with her father claiming earlier this year that ‘Francia told Selena that she didn’t give her the kidney so she could go out and drink’; seen in 2022

Raisa allegedly confronted Gomez about her ‘unhealthy choices,’ which led to a falling out.

But they reconciled in late 2018 after Gomez suffered a mental breakdown and checked herself into a facility.

Tensions flared in late 2022 when the Monte Carlo actress told Rolling Stone she has no famous friends aside from Taylor Swift.

According to People, E! News reposted a portion of the quote on Instagram, and in a since-deleted comment, Raisa had written, ‘Interesting.’

Gomez later seemingly referenced to Raisa’s response in a TikTok and addressed the interview by explaining, ‘Sorry I didn’t mention every person I know.’

Adding fuel to the fire, Gomez also failed to mention Raisa as she spoke candidly about her mental and physical health in her Apple TV+ documentary My Mind And Me.

But Raisa has insisted in multiple interviews this year that there is ‘no beef’ between herself and the Rare singer.

Raisa has insisted in multiple interviews this year that there is ‘no beef’ between herself and the Rare singer

Battle of the BFFs: Tensions flared in late 2022 when the Monte Carlo actress told Rolling Stone she has no famous friends aside from Taylor Swift

She also recently shutdown reports that she was ‘forced’ to go through with the transplant surgery while appearing on the Good Guys Podcast.

‘I just felt it in my heart, I knew I was a match. I knew it was gonna happen,’ she told the hosts.

‘No one forced me to do anything. It came out of the genuine kindness of my heart and I’ve been super blessed ever since.’

Gomez showed appreciation for Raisa’s sacrifice as she candidly discussed the life-saving transplant while appearing on the Apple TV+ series Dear….

She explained that the actress took it upon herself to get tested to see if she could be a kidney donor.

Gomez also recalled how ‘unbelievably overwhelming’ it was that Raisa didn’t even second-guess making the decision.

‘So within three days she went to go do it and she was a match, and it was one of those moments where I felt watched over,’ she said.

She said that she ‘will never, ever, ever be more in debt to a person than Francia.’

Things appear to have smoothed over between the two as they’ve been spotted hanging out in recent months — including a bowling alley date in LA this past August.

Raisa recently followed Gomez back on Instagram.