It was an emotional reunion for a Stonington family after the cat they thought was dead showed up on their doorstep on Tuesday.

The happiest moment of 9-year-old Nicholas Johnson’s life was caught on camera in tears, holding onto his best friend and pet cat Gunther. His parents surprised him and his 5-year-old sister, Aubrey, when they came home from school.

Gunther went missing while the Johnson family was on vacation over the holidays. The children's mother, Samantha, posted all over Facebook, asking if anyone in town saw him.

On Sunday, Stonington Animal Control called the family and said they might have found their cat. The Johnsons were devasted when they were told the cat with similar markings to Gunther died after being hit by a car.

The next day, a man gave the Johnsons a kitten that the family named Lucky, who looks like Gunther, to help ease some of the pain.

On Tuesday, when Samantha was sitting down for breakfast, she heard a screeching meow.

"I went to the door and he was just standing there looking at me and I was like, 'Gunther! Hello'," Samantha said.

Samantha posted a video of the heartwarming reunion that was shared hundreds of times. The children can be seen crying and hugging their missing furry friend.

Now the family has two cats to love.

"Sometimes when (I'm having a) hard time, (I) go over to him (and) he talks to me. I feel like he answers me when I talk to him. It’s like he’s a person, but he’s not," Johnson said, petting Gunther, his best friend.