A series of posts with the top five fics of each category by kudos plus five more hidden gems from that category! Remember to leave kudos and a comment on the fics you enjoyed to show your appreciation! You can find the library's other recs here.
1️⃣ Unbelievers by @isthatyoularry {E, 136k}
It’s Louis’ senior year, and he’s dead set on doing it right. However, along with his pair of cleats, a healthy dose of sarcasm and his ridiculous best friend, he’s also got a complicated family, a terrifyingly uncertain future, and a mortal enemy making his life just that much worse. Mortal enemies “with benefits” was not exactly the plan.
Or: The one where Louis and Harry definitely aren’t friends, and football is everything.
2️⃣ Hold My Breath by @zarah5 {M, 19k}
AU. It's possible — possible — that his three-week ban from the football pitch makes Louis just a tad antsy. Surely it's not so bad that it warrants punishment in the form of his friends signing him up for a yoga class? Either way, Louis is determined to hate every second of it.
He didn't count on a yoga instructor who wears flower-patterned headscarves and smiles like summer won't end.
3️⃣ Whirlwind by dolce_piccante {M, 21k}
AU. Acclaimed actor, Hollywood heartthrob, and Oscar nominee, Harry Styles, seems to have the world at his feet, but seeks out an old friend when he needs a date for his big night.
4️⃣ i want you so much (but i hate your guts) by becauselarry / @obviouslybecauselarry {M, 83k}
AU in which Louis gets accepted to play for the Manchester University Alpha-Beta Football Team. The only problem: Louis is actually an Omega. He is determined to make it big in the football world, though, and he can't do that bound to an Omega team. With the help of a faked doctor's certificate and some pretty strong suppressants he is ready to fight for his dream.
That Harry Styles (Alpha, second year and youngest football captain of the A-B team in ages) doesn't seem to like him complicates matters, though.
5️⃣ You're An Asshole (But I Love You) by theboyfriendstagram {E, 85k}
College AU where Harry studies law and psychology. Louis is a philophobic frat boy who’s majoring in acting, plays footie and needs tutoring in psychology. Of course they hate each other but that doesn’t stop them from having a ridiculous amount of sexual tension.
or Louis is a frat boy with a drinking problem who doesn't know what he wants to do with his life, and Harry is a psychology student who always takes care of him and might just be exactly what Louis doesn't want, but really needs.
💎 You Should Be Here With Me by @lululawrence {NR, 35k}
The festive period is a traditionally hectic one in the world of Premier League football, and this year is no different. A lot is riding on how Manchester United is able to come through the fixtures in the coming weeks.
Louis and his teammates know all too well the pressure that is on their shoulders. They need to prove, not just to fans of the club but the entire league, that they still have what it takes to be a team worthy of fighting for the top of the table.
Throw in the fact that Louis is all too aware that he's not getting any younger in a profession that demands your peak physical fitness year round and the incredibly fit Harry Styles, who is part of the club's social media team, and this year's festive period might just be the most important one yet.
💎 Higher, Further, Faster by hazzahtomlinson / @itsnotreal {E, 31k}
Or the one where Harry decides to go to college regardless of what his team warns him about and has to face the consequences, some of which aren’t so terrible after all. There's anger, confusion, laughter and love. Mix in a bit of FIFA and a boy who plays soccer at the college Harry goes to and it just might be the happily ever after he didn’t know he wanted.
💎 Running Through The Garden by juniperlightning / @juniperlightningwrites {E, 11k}
For the 1D Short & Sweet Fest
Based on the prompt:
Character A buys a house with a big garden to have the opportunity to relax while gardening. Turns out character B is a loud, football loving person, who loves to play in his garden. When the ball ends up on the wrong side of the fence more than once, there is not only irritation between the neighbours.
💎 Paradise By the Dashboard Lights by forthefearless / @forthefearless28 {M, 10k}
I happily present to you, my contribution to the Bottom Harry Fic Fest!
This was my lovely prompt:
#83. 80s au where Louis is the popular cool guy, and on Saturdays, he never goes out, he's never home, and none of his friends really know where he is. What no one knows is that on Saturday, the drive-in cinema of the town plays romcoms and there's a beautiful boy with green eyes who works there, but Louis is too shy to ask him out, so he doesn't want anyone to know.
💎 every day and tomorrow night by @justanothershadeofblue {E, 8k}
Harry stares. The new boy is beautiful, there’s no other word for him. He’s got caramel brown hair in a tousled cut and cheekbones for days, skin that’s tanned a deep gold, and eyes a shade of blue that’s visible even from across the room. He’s standing with his hands on his hips and one knee slightly bent, his thighs thick where they extend past the ragged hem of his denim shorts. His biceps are defined and his hands look small but capable, and Harry’s mouth is quite literally watering.
“What’s his name?” Harry asks, without taking his gaze off the boy in the doorway. He doesn’t want to blink and miss a single moment of eye candy.
Zayn chuckles. “See something you like, then?”
“You know the rule, Z,” Harry answers, still not pulling his eyes away from this unexpected Adonis. “If I lick it, it’s mine."
