So. Long. Since. I. Published. Something. And that makes me sad. I've always seen Baby John as this awkward person that in reality is a really deep thinker and this drabble reflects that view. I hope all you little cosmic children enjoy.
"You are the universe, expressing itself as a human for a little while." ~Eckhart Tolle
"You don't have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body." ~C.S. Lewis
~.~
"Do ya think Tony an' Riff are up there?"
A-Rab exhaled a puff of smoke. "Up where, Baby John?"
"Up in Heaven? Or are they someplace else?"
He loved Baby John to death, but there were times the kid was too damn—curious for A-Rab's liking. "I don't know. No one knows what happens ta us when ya die. Ya could just stay in the ground for all we know."
"But what happens to you, A-Rab? Your body stays in the dirt, yeah, but what about what makes you you?"
"Baby John, you're askin' the wrong guy." A-Rab paused, inspecting his half-consumed cigarette. "What do ya mean by 'you'?"
"Ya know A-Rab; the left over stuff after your body gets all mushy in the ground. The stuff that made ya smile, an' angry, an' all the things ya liked doin' when ya was alive." Baby John paused. He tilted his head upwards, focusing on two stars closer together than the rest. After his grandfather passed away, Tony had reassured Baby John stars are the remainders of the dead. "Where does all that stuff go? Does it go up ta the stars with ya? Does it go ta Heaven? Or do ya just float around everywhere?"
"Whoa, Baby John, slow down! I gotta be able ta at least try ta follow ya if ya want an answer." A-Rab rubbed his neck. "Look, Baby John, if you're afraid of dyin'…"
"I ain't afraid of dyin', A-Rab. I just—I wanna know that Tony an' Riff are happy. Wherever they are."
"I bet they are damn happy. Whether they are in Heaven, stars, or ghosts sittin' right next to us." The kid could be real deep, and A-Rab gave him credit for that. "Hell, some people think we never die, and just keep comin' back as other things, so they could be doin' that too. The point is, ya don't need ta keep worrin' about them Baby John."
Baby John fixed his back on the sky. "Tony, Riff, if ya can hear me, I just—I just wanted ta say hi. An' sorry that things couldn't be different."
A-Rab sighed. He lit up another cigarette, frowning that it was his last one because he had a feeling Baby John had a lot to talk about with Tony and Riff.