"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference." – Robert Frost

Dear Dad,
I hate you. I hate you for sticking me on this train. I hate you for sending me off to Tulsa, of all the places in the entire fucking world. I hate you for telling me I had no choice – that I had no choice but to go live with Dallas and Uncle Carl. I hate you for thinking that getting me out of the city would help. I fucking hate you.

Sincerely yours,
Joy-Anna.

Joy was anything but joyful as she looked out the window as the trees whizzed past. She had just boarded the train connecting her from Texas to Oklahoma City, where her cousin, Dallas Winston, was due to pick her up. She had been on the train for what felt like a lifetime, though in reality, it had been less than a week since she left her studio apartment behind, for a life of misery halfway across the country.

Her father had decided, that after her 15th arrest in the last 6 months, that she needed to escape the city once and for all. She, on the other hand, didn't see it that way. She would have much rather stayed where she was.

Sure, she'd seen enough people get shot. She'd sold drugs to make a living. She stole. She got blitzed. She fell into the wrong crowd. But then, so did most people. All of her friends had their troubles. Moving her to Tulsa sure as hell wasn't going to solve them.

She continued to stare out of the window, as the scenery began to change. They were crossing through one of the bigger cities. But then, everything was bigger in Texas.

"I just don't get it," she huffed, throwing the notebook she'd been writing it aside. "Why the hell did he have to send me to Tulsa? Why not Florida with Aunt May?" she didn't care that people were giving her funny looks for talking to herself. She'd gotten funny looks since the moment she boarded the train, her long, jet black hair greased back, her ice blue eyes shining with hatred. She didn't care that people stared at her ratty old leather jacket, a hand-me-down from Dallas himself, wrapped tightly around her despite the summer's heat. Her jeans were torn. Her bag, covered in dirt, among other things.

She didn't care. She looked like a hood, and she didn't care one bit. Rather, she felt quite proud. It wasn't often that a female in her neighborhood looked more like a hood than a tramp. She wasn't into the big hair, short skirts and loads of makeup. She'd rather rough it like her family always had. Having been raised by boys her entire life, she looked more like her older brother, Sam, than anything else. Except, unlike her brother, she let her hair grow down to her waist. She rarely ever got it cut, except after the fire incident a few months earlier. The damn incident that ripped away her freedom, causing her to spend three months in the cooler, for something she didn't even do.

The time she spent in the cooler made her even more rebellious. Even more determined to undermine authority. That was why she didn't understand why her father thought it was fit to send her to live with her cousin. Dallas was as bad as she was, if not worse. He was known for being sly, sneaky and trouble always seemed to find him, wherever he went. He had been the one who got her involved in the drug trade in the city to begin with. He helped her get out of trouble more than once. But only at the expense of breaking the law even more.

But her father didn't care. It'll be good for you, he said. Maybe you'll learn some respect. He continued. She argued and argued, but it was a useless cause. He was shipping her off, and so he did. Now she sat, contemplating her escape, while the hills and trees flew past her window.

"Maybe it won't be so bad," she said to herself as she looked down at the little piece of paper in her hands. "At least I'll be with Dallas again," she went on. "He's the only person that ever gave a flying fuck about me no how." She leaned back on the uncomfortable bench and closed her eyes, hoping to get at least a few minutes of sleep before she had to push her way through a crowd of ignorant Social freaks.

A loud bang made her jump upright. She spun around in her seat, trying to find the source of the sound. To her, it sounded exactly like a gunshot, a very familiar sound. To her surprise, it was just some stupid kid, who happened to drop the world's heaviest book. She sighed and leaned against the window, wishing for the damn train to move faster. She hated spending this much time doing absolutely nothing. She hated feeling trapped, feeling locked in a cage. It reminded her of her time in the cooler.

When the train finally pulled to a stop at the station, she was one of the first ones off the train. All she had with her was an old, tattered backpack. She pulled it over her shoulder before pushing through the crowd, hoping to see Dally somewhere in the mass of people waiting for their friends and family to unload. She spotted him standing near a payphone. His eyes were scanning the crowd. He hadn't seen her yet. She sighed and pushed her way between a pair of Socs who were taking up more space than they were worth. She nearly tripped when one elbowed her in the ribs. She turned, her eyes burning with fury as she pushed the guy back as hard as she could, causing him to fall flat on his ass.

"Hey you little Greaser Monkey, why don't you go home where you belong?" the girl who had been standing next to him growled.

"Why don't you kiss my ass?" She spat. She took a step towards Joy as a small circle formed around us. Joy threw her bag to the side, her temper getting the best of her. The other girl, a tall, thin blonde, threw herself at Joy before she had a chance to react. Thankfully, Joy was used to the brawl like fights. She threw punches, quick and hard, not caring that she was flat on her back. She bit into the girls arm, causing her to jolt back.

"You little freak!" she screamed, pulling her blood arm to her body. Joy smirked, pleased with herself, as she spit out the girl's blood. She wiped her mouth on her sleeve before picking up her bag and half running, half walking towards Dally, who was smiling proud at her.

"Still feisty as ever," he chuckled, throwing his arm around her. She was a foot taller than she was, despite them both being relatively the same age.

"Naturally," she laughed as she walked along, not caring that she was getting glares from those around her. "That little…that little Mustang driving, beer-bash throwing…fluffy foo froo cunt needed to be taught a lesson!" she growled under her breath and she pushed ahead of Dally, needing fresh air more than anything.

As soon as they reached the parking lot, she pulled a pack of Kools out of her pocket, lit up, and took a long, hard drag. Her heart was still racing in her chest as she walked over to Dally's car, the same car he used to drive in New York all the time. She leaned against the bumper, letting the burning sensation ease her nerves.

"Your ol' man sounded pissed when he called to let us know you were coming, you give him a hard time again?" Dally asked, standing beside her.

"Got locked up a few times. Spent more than my share of time in Juvy, then got thrown in with the big guys when that damn fire broke out," she sighed. "Rather have spent that time in Juvy. The big time ain't so great." She shivered at the memories. She still had the scar from the first jail fight she'd been involved in. A long, deep scar that ran from her chest down to her belly button. Some fat, cocky bitch said the wrong thing to her, she went ape shit, then the damn bitch sliced her real good.

"Joy!" Dally scolded her. "What'd I always tell ya?"

"Don't get caught," she grunted. "Wasn't my fault, Dally, honest."

"Uh-huh, kid, you gotta use your head!" he hollered.

"I said it wasn't my fault!" she growled. She opened the car door and slammed it behind her with enough force that Dally gritted his teeth.

The ride back to Tulsa wasn't too long, but the silence made Joy even more jumpy. She wasn't used to it. She was used to the loud, busy sounds of the city. Dally didn't say much to her as he drove, just asked her what her plans were, if she'd be going to school, stuff like that. She didn't want to talk about that right then, but she'd rather have him rattle on about useless stuff than sit in silence. Silence made her nervous. Noise, now that was something she could handle.

Her back ached from the fight, but she didn't complain. She felt proud that she was still able to carry her own, even without her trusty blade in her pocket. Her father had taken everything except her lighter from her before she boarded the train. He was smart to do so. He knew Joy wouldn't be afraid to pull it on the first person who looked at her the wrong way.

When Dally pulled up in front of Buck's, Joy gave him a dirty look.

"What?" he grunted, glaring at her.

"Can't we just go to your dad's? I need a shower," she grumbled.

"You can walk to my ol' man's if you want to. I ain't goin' home just yet," he snapped.

"Please?" she asked as sweet as she could. He sighed and muttered something under his breath before turning the car around and heading down a few streets. He pulled up in front of his house and practically kicked her out of the car.

"I'll pick you up in an hour," he called as she slammed the door. Thinking twice, she opened the door again and gave him a funny look.

"Why?"

"Because you don't wanna be here when he gets home," he said with a shrug. "I'm sure Darry'll let you crash on his couch tonight."

"Who?" She asked, giving him a look again.

"Darry Curtis. You'll meet him later. Go on, get done," he said nearly pulling off before she could close the door. Sighing, she headed up the stairs, into the house.

The house was quiet. Too quiet. Joy immediately carried her bag into the bathroom and turned the water on. She rummaged through her bag until she found what she was looking for. Her eyeliner, her hair grease, her brush, and her tooth brush. She also pulled out a bottle of shampoo and conditioner, before pulling out her black jeans and an old black t-shirt. She tossed her dirty clothes on the floor before pulling the curtain shut, the hot water streaming down on her, easing the ache from her bones.

She examined the bruises on her body. The ones on her back hurt the worst, but she knew they'd heal quickly. The one on her shoulder looked the worst, but that was the one caused by non-other than her old man, who had no problem tossing her around like he did the boys. She washed her hair quickly, working the grease and dirt from her long locks.

Once she was showered and changed, she wandered through the house, looking for something to entertain herself with until Dally came back. Normally, she'd just walk around by her lonesome, but she didn't know Tulsa well enough to even consider that. She knew that Socs strayed far out of their own territory at times, even here in dumb-fuck nowhere. She didn't need to risk getting caught up with them already.

Instead, she wandered outside, threw her bag at her feet and sat on the steps, watching as the neighborhood kids ran amuck.

"God, I hate it here," she muttered as she took out her notebook and began writing. Little did she know that her time in Tulsa would be a lot more eventful than all the years she spent in New York City. Even the worst crimes would seem small next to the adventure she was about to get mixed up in.

A/n - Welcome to yet another one of my Outsiders Fics! This one goes far out of my normal writing patterns, so bear with me!

Summery Extended Version:

17 year old Joy-Anna had spent her entire life growing up on one of the worst sides of New York City. When her father has finally had enough of her bad behavior, he ships her to live with her Cousin Dallas Winston, in Tulsa. Jay is beyond aggravated with her father's decision, but when she winds up involved in a scandal that would ultimately cost her her cousin's life, she learns that Tulsa is no better than NYC after all. With her attitude far from in check, a wild child as her only real friend, and nothing but rumbles and stealing and other criminal things to keep her busy, Joy finds herself struggling to find her place in the gang, as well as in a city she'd never been to before.

Between Life and Lies follows the events of The Outsiders, but from a different standpoint. It starts about two months after the Curtis's lose their parents, and won't end until after the events of the book itself. Join Joy, as she lives the events of the book through a female's eye.

Warning - there may be a pairing later on. I haven't decided just yet. Rating due to crude language.