Editing Drop Dead Fred (section)

==Plot==
Unassertive and repressed Minneapolis [[court reporter]] Elizabeth Cronin visits her husband Charles, from whom she is separated, on her lunch break, hoping to sort out their problems. He reasserts his desire for a divorce and says that he is in love with another woman, named Annabella.

While she is at a public phone, first a man breaks into her car to steal her purse, and another steals the car itself. Forced to run back to work at the courthouse, she arrives late and gets fired. As she leaves the courthouse, she runs into childhood friend Mickey Bunce, who brings up memories they shared, including those of Elizabeth's imaginary friend, Drop Dead Fred. Mickey reminds her how everybody else thought she was crazy. A series of flashbacks show that though he caused havoc, he also gave her happiness and a release from her oppressive mother, Polly.

After a pep talk from her friend Janie, Elizabeth moves back in with her mother, who blames her for her divorce, and changes her appearance to impress Charles. She finds a taped-shut jack-in-the-box, and removes the tape, releasing Fred. He agrees to help her feel better, which she believes will only happen when she wins back Charles. However, his childish antics do more harm than good. He sinks Janie's houseboat, causes havoc at a restaurant, and tricks Elizabeth into attacking a violinist in a shopping mall.

Worried by Elizabeth's recent odd behavior, Polly takes her to a (children's) psychologist. In the waiting room, Fred is seen meeting up with the imaginary friends of other patients, who are all children. The doctor prescribes medication to rid her of Fred, whom he and Polly believe is a figment of her imagination. The medication also has the effect of slowly killing Fred.

Fred reminds Elizabeth that one day, while they were making a mess on the dinner table, she heard her mother coming and she imagined him hiding in a [[jack-in-the-box]]. Polly, fed up with Elizabeth playing with Fred, took the jack-in-the-box and taped it shut, essentially taking Fred away from her. The event left Elizabeth traumatized, and her father Nigel left not long after. Elizabeth then wrote a letter to Fred, saying they'd run away together. Elizabeth and Fred run away from Polly and a nurse to Charles' party.

Charles now wants her back and she is overjoyed until Fred discovers he is still cheating with Annabella and tells her. Heartbroken, she tells Fred that she cannot leave Charles because she is scared of being alone. She then passes out. They escape to a [[dream sequence]] in which she is able to reject Charles and stand up to Polly, declaring she is no longer afraid of her. She frees her imprisoned childhood self. Fred tells her that she no longer needs him, so they kiss and he disappears.

Upon awakening, Elizabeth dumps Charles and stands up to Polly. Before leaving, she reconciles with Polly and encourages her to find a friend to escape her own loneliness. Days later, she visits Mickey and his daughter Natalie, who blames Drop Dead Fred for the mischief that just caused her nanny to quit. Elizabeth realizes Fred is now with Natalie, although she cannot see him anymore.