Late to the party but why not, it's a slow day at work.
I was known as the super nice "goth" kid. I wasn't goth by any sense of the term, but this was before emo became an actual clothing/personal style. I just wore a lot of black, had the thick rimmed glasses, and was super into computers. My first year at school no one really talked to me so I buried my nose into books, computers, and academics. Then I made a few friends in a programming class by helping them get through a problem, and suddenly I was known for how kind I was despite "looking so scary", as one girl always put it.
Eventually everyone in the school knew me one way or another, and I always liked helping people so I would just sit with others and listen while they shared their story and tales of woe. By the end of my sophomore year I would have people that were strangers to me come up to me at lunch and say "Hey Arkahd, I've heard you're a good listener... can I talk to you about something?" I got to hear drama, gossip, tales of abusive families(I talked to a counselor about one case, a year later the father was discharged from his post and I've last heard the young woman is finishing her masters in some engineering thing. never talked to her again but I feel/hope I did the right thing), and general thoughts about their lives and futures. It felt powerful and enlightening to be so trusted by so many people.
Unfortunately since I moved away from the place I've never held that level of status amongst a social circle, and it actually has led me to feel very depressed that I may have "peaked" socially during high school (what a cliche right?). But life is interesting and ever evolving, and I'm getting better about not trying to reach for that old social high I used to get. These days I just hope I brightened a few people's high school experience, mostly because behind the scenes I was very unhappy with my own life up to that point. I still think about a few of them and hope they're okay, but they're strong of will so I have faith they're doing just fine! :)