Nick Cannon Recalls 'Beautiful' Final Day at the Beach with Son Zen: 'I See It as a Blessing'

Nick Cannon and Alyssa Scott spent a "beautiful" last day with their 5-month-old son, Zen.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, the TV host opens up about the peaceful day he and Scott had with their son — who died of a brain tumor on Dec. 5 — and the decision the co-parents made to spend their final moments together at the beach.

Over Thanksgiving weekend Zen's condition (he was diagnosed with high-grade glioma, a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer, in August) took a turn for the worse.

"You could tell he was struggling," Cannon, 41, recalls. "He was gasping for air. We'd wake up, and he wouldn't be breathing for maybe five to 10 seconds at a time, and then he'd let out a huge gasp. You could see it frightened him. It was the scariest thing I've ever experienced."

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RELATED: Nick Cannon Opens Up About Losing His 5-Month-Old Son Zen to Cancer: 'My Heart Is Shattered'

The next morning Cannon suggested to Scott they head to the beach.

"I was like, 'We have to watch the sunrise and just be there with him one last time.' It was beautiful."

"It was one of those things where it was meaningful, and so many small little things that when you have the universe or the most high force letting you know everything is going to be alright, and it feels like maybe the end physically, but it's only the beginning spiritually," he says.

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Adding: "The water means a lot to us. We took our maternity pictures in Hawaii, in the water, in the ocean. I think it's stuff like that that helps you deal with it. It's more of a celebration of life. We got a short time to spend with a true angel."

Later that evening, Zen took his final breath — with his parents by his side.

"I see it as a blessing that I got to be there," says Cannon. "Alyssa says, 'I think he was just waiting for you.' "

Cannon first revealed the tragic news on his daytime talk show Nick Cannon on Dec. 7.

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"We had a short time with a true angel," says Cannon. "My heart is shattered. I wish I could have done more, spent more time with him, taken more pictures. I wish I could have hugged him longer."

As grief sets in, Cannon and Scott are focusing on the good that came from their short time with Zen. "He was the most loving baby," says Cannon. "I look at being his father as a great privilege."

Adds Scott via a written statement to PEOPLE: "It was a privilege being Zen's mommy. It's so beautiful and encouraging to see even complete strangers being touched and moved by Zen's light. Zen's spirit and light will shine bright forever."