Getting sentimental! Sarah Hyland finally unveiled on August 2 via Instagram the tattoo that she got back in January, and the meaning behind it is emotional.
The Modern Family star, 25, shared a semi-racy pic that featured a white ribbed crop top held up to reveal her sideboob and the tat, which is located on her left rib cage, near her heart. The design is decorated with a single daisy and reads, "Follow my heartbeat."
The phrase is a nod to lyrics from the Broadway musical Hair, in which Hyland starred at the Hollywood Bowl during an August 2014 run. "'Where do I go? Follow my heartbeat.' – HAIR," the XOXO star captioned the black-and-white pic, calling out artist Dr. Woo, who is also responsible for inking Hyland's Modern Family costar Ariel Winter. "Got this tattoo by the amazing @_dr_woo_ this past January."
The Candies creative director's reason for sharing the shot more than six months after the fact? "Since it's been exactly 2 years since I was with my #hairtribe at the #hollywoodbowl I figured it would be nice to finally post it," she wrote of her castmates, which included Kristen Bell and Glee alums Amber Riley and Jenna Ushkowitz. "Thank you [director] @adamshankman for changing my life and helping me know that all I need is within me," she added. "#selflove."
Just after Hair's run was complete, the Vampire Academy actress decided to break things off with her boyfriend of five years, Matt Prokop. One month after calling it quits in August 2014, Hyland sought a restraining order against her former beau, who she met while auditioning for High School Musical 3. The order, which was granted in October 2014, followed a series of abusive incidents, including Prokop allegedly choking her with "a grip so tight that [she] could not breath or speak."
Hyland told Meredith Vieira of the incident, "People have to go through things in order to become the person they are today, and that's that." She also shared a line with Vieira from a Robert Frost poem: "The only way out is through."
