A/N: Today's entry is a bit of a collaborative effort. Songbird52317 shared a tweet that said Jae earned himself a phonecall home by being perfect in one of his tasks. Which is why he's spending today contemplating sticks and carrots.

Being a trainee soldier really isn't that much different from being a trainee idol. Long hours, hard work, rigid schedules, repetition and lots of being yelled at… and results are expected. Sticks and carrots, too. Though the army is much better at allowing a reasonable amount of sleep. And more forthcoming with the carrots.

Most of our exercises have to be completed in a specified time or with a specified score. If you fail, you do it over until your performance comes up to scratch. But rather than just yell at us and make us repeat everything until we're perfect, here we're offered rewards along the way.

Like phonecalls home. Or cake. Or a snatch of free time for the team, where we can do as we wish.

And while all the carrots remind me of feeling like a trained monkey - which I honestly haven't in years - they also create a bit of competition in the group. Largely friendly, since - for the most part - the treats are aimed at the whole team. There are a few individual rewards and since I've just proved that I can throw grenades in perfect style, I now get to choose who, of all the people left behind outside this base, I'd like to speak to for a few minutes.

No contest, really. Though all of a sudden, a phone seems a truly miraculous thing. And why the hell am I shaking?