As I woke up this morning and began my daily ritual that I so religiously follow of updating myself on everything that has been happening all night, the first headlines I came across was that a girl got raped in Multan by 6 men, 3 of them being police officers. As I read on about what happened, this aura of unease took over me and overpowered me completely.

Maybe the headlines should've said 'another girl got raped today', "new day - new story". So, that's just the way the world works? Is that what our mantra is? A new day, a new beginning?

At this point, do we keep scrolling? Do we let our minds take a stroll around this delusional garden of perfection that we have created for ourselves or do we stop and set our priorities? Do we stop and point out the thorns which we so casually ignore most of the times?

Consumed in all these thoughts, I suddenly started feeling exposed in my very own home, my safe haven.

How are the rest of us not vulnerable to the atrocities of such monsters? The people who raped her were the very people who swore to keep the streets safe, to main order, to provide security, to keep us safe.

So, to the girl who got raped, I'm sorry this society failed you. I'm sorry you got your most fundamental right taken away, the right to your freedom.

I promise to not let another person tell me to dress reasonably, to not ignorantly conceal myself in the magical powers of the dupatta and naively believe that it is my savior from all the devilish mischief that exists.

I promise to not let someone give me respect because I'm someone's daughter, wife or sister, but because I'm a human being, a person with her own voice and thoughts.

I promise to not let a guy ogle me and get away with it because if he's not stopped, the same guy who is taking pleasure by the sense of sight today might take a step further tomorrow and molest, harass, rape yet "another girl on another day".

Lastly, to the girl who got raped, I promise to not just keep scrolling and let you be another headline.