Since 8th standard, I've been interested in Olympiad Math to such an extent that I did not study any of the other subjects, including History, Geography etc(which is true even now). I neglected these not because I disliked the subjects, rather, I hated the way we were taught them. So I'd read up the text on or a day before the exam, and still come first or second in school. This continued till 10th standard, and my Secondary finals were closing in. I thought that I'd just get the subjects done with two weeks before the finals, and hence did not study anything. When my mom used to check on what I was doing, I'd stealthily hide my Math pages under the History book, and start muttering dates enthusiastically.
But I caught a horrible viral fever one week before the exam. I knew that I was practically done for, and probably I won't do any good in the exams. In the midst of all the headache, and trying my best to keep my eyes open while reading the absolutely boring textbooks, I still took notes of the important points that I thought I was weak at. My biggest challenge was not reading the other subjects, but it was to minimize the time I spent doing math.
Finally, I scored a whopping 90% in History, 95% in Geography, and 80% in Literature, which got me the 2nd Rank in the city. I was glad I could make a comeback despite my illness.