The answer to this relies on the definition of "typical teenage romance." So I'll define the typical teenage romance as one that seems to be "stereotypical" as posed in television and other media: boy meets girl (usually at school), the two like each other but cannot say it openly, the two find reasons to be near each other, boy finally asks girl out on a date, the two live happily ever after. If this is the defining rule, Junior and Penelope's relationship is not typical. As the novel unfolds, we as readers see that the foundation of Junior and Penelope's relationship is the fact that the two of them feel like outcasts: Junior is outwardly an outcast at Reardan because he is the only Indian student there, and Penelope is inwardly an outcast because she has an abusive father in a world in which her friends seem to have "dream lives." Penelope feels like she can open up to Junior to tell him about her father Earl, and Junior also confides in her. They have a strong friendship--one based on mutual support and concern. Their relationship appears to be much more mature than the typical teenage romance.
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