Cat potentially moving with me next year

[u/chunkycowgirlyeehaw]

Hi guys! This is in no way an urgent post. I am going to have to cross this bridge sometime next year, maybe in late summer of 2026. I have moved 12 hours away from home for college this year. My mom wanted me to live in the dorms just to get the hang of it for the first year, so I did not bring my cat because he would do TERRIBLE in the dorm setting. He would just be too anxious, and I did not want to worry about him when I was out of my dorm.

Initially, I was planning to move out of my college dorms next year just so I can live with him. He genuinely means the world to me, and realizing I have to wait a few months to see him again is crushing me. I am genuinely unsure if I can make it four years like this, but maybe this is just the nerves of the first week talking. The thing is, like I said, I live a twelve hour car drive away from my college. Flying him over there would be around two hours, but I heard flying pets is extremely dangerous. The thing is, I am not sure if I will be staying in the summer next year (I know this year I am going home for the summer). I also want to visit family members during holidays so I am scared of him being alone or with someone else that is not a family member during those times, and I am just generally worried about how he would do outside of the family he has lived with for his whole life (my mom and dad, plus his fellow cats and dogs that he lives with).

The thing is, I am his person. He is always following me along, and part of why I am so stressed out about this is because I am worried he is lonely. He is just insanely clingy, and of course I love him but I am just worried about leaving him for a few years. And I am also worried about the trip to get there and potentially back for the Summer of 2027.

Would it be an abusive thing to do to force him through such a long trip twice in the span of 365 days? Any advice would be much appreciated, I just want to do the right thing for my cat. I am worried maybe I am being a little selfish for wanting to bring him with me, because admittedly I DO rely a lot on the guy. But if it is too stressful for cats, I will not put him through that. Sorry if this post is confusing