After The Fall

Jessica Contrera: In the days before they buried her, no one knew how not to come undone. Her roommate dropped out of school. Her father kept abruptly needing to leave the room. And her mother, who looked so much like her already, started wearing her daughter's clothes. In the news and on campus, Rachael Fiege became known as the IU freshman who died at her first college party. The one who never even made it to her first class.

The scene played out in her parents' minds again and again – Rachael tumbling down the stairs, her friends watching over her through the night, the paramedics trying to save her.

Angi Fiege, her mom, had a recurring nightmare where her daughter was lying on the couch…