I had a Missy once. She was with me for 19 years. She insisted on being in my lap all the time, and slept on my pillow so she could curl around my head. Black and white, half Siamese, very vocal.
She is waiting at the Rainbow Bridge, I am sure. Just like your Tubby.
Missy was just a stray tabby that showed up at my barn ready to have kittens, but none of them survived. Then one day she was gone. About 2 weeks later I’m in the barn feeding in the morning and I hear a loud meow. There she was with a compound fractured right rear leg. I scooped her up and rushed to the vet and he amputated her leg. She’s been in the house and on lap for 10 years now.