Am I the Asshole?

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The original was posted on /r/AmItheAsshole by /u/Educational-Bat3496 on 2023-06-27 17:58:45+00:00.

I (19F) am a student in college. I moved away immediately from home at 18 into college dorms. My college is only about 2 hours away, but in a different state. I usually come visit my parents every weekend if I’m not working, and i come home for the summers. Here’s some background on my cat, Lucky. Lucky was a feral cat I rescued from our very wooded backyard, and I instantly grew attached to him. One of the hardest things I had to do was to leave him while I went off to college, but I knew it was best for him as he had already adjusted to my house and the other animals inside my house. Here’s where the story starts.

I was heading home on my two hour trek this weekend, and as I walked into my house, I instantly called for my cat Lucky. He usually comes running to me after entering the door, but today he did not do that. I looked quite literally everywhere. All of his favorite hiding places, his cat trees, my bed, literally everywhere. I then went to go ask my parents where he may be, and that’s where I met my parents at the kitchen table looking upset and very guilty. Instantly I asked what was wrong, what happened, if everyone was okay, etc. My parents then proceeded to tell me that my cat, Lucky, has died earlier that week. Appalled, I asked why they had not called me, texted me, or even made a mention at any point. They told me it was a very hard conversation to have over the phone and that they didn’t want to disrupt me during my “busy season”. Instantly I was upset and I ended up balling while yelling at them. I was seriously so upset, especially because they know I would have dropped anything I was doing, to drive home and see him in his last few days. After I had calmed down a little bit, I asked what he had died of, and all they said was old age and that they didn’t do an autopsy. That confused me because my cat was only 6 years old, and he hadn’t had any previous health issues or concerns. Slowly I tried to accept the fact that he was gone, but then I had to ask the most important question. Did they cremate him? My parents knew I wanted him cremated so I could have a type of jewelry made, or just some type of memorial. It was very important to me that they listened to my wishes, but that idea went completely downhill when my parents looked at eachother, and then at me, and shook their heads. Now this would’ve threw me over the edge, but as I went to leave out of anger, they yelled that it was just a joke and he’s still here. Instead of walking back to them, i just walked out. As I went to drive around, I got an abundance of texts from both my parents asking me to come home.

They now are saying that I am petty and being soft.

What do i do now? AITA for ghosting my parents and not coming home?