“When you know, you know.” Eighteen months after they first met, radiant 18-year-old bride Ruby Paige Pierre and 22-year old Luke Iraia West tied the knot.

The besotted young couple were married in an intimate beach side ceremony of love, trust and commitment surrounded by 50 immediate family and friends on Saturday, December 17.

Last year Ruby moved to Palmerston North, New Zealand from Rarotonga to complete her educational studies.

Then she met Luke. They exchanged social media contacts and since then they haven’t stopped talking to one another.

“I decided to get married because I thought what was the point in waiting. If I know he’s the one, and I know what I want in life, why should I wait,” says Ruby.

She acknowledges that at 18 it might be considered by some as being too young.

“But it feels right,” says Ruby.

But because of her relatively young age, she has had to deal with people asking personal questions.

“I’ve had a lot of people ask if I am pregnant. I can assure them I am not. 

“He’s (Luke) my best friend and there’s no better way to live life than with your best friend by your side.”

Ruby hails from the village of Rangiatea, Matavera and New Zealand – her parents are Kathryn and Jason Pierre. Luke is from Muriwai, Gisborne, New Zealand and his parents Marama and Mark West and his siblings flew in for the special day.

When the couple decided to get married, Ruby says she did initially worry a little bit, mainly about what her parents would think and what others would say.

“But at the end of the day, it was me getting married and not anyone else. I’m glad my parents were on board and have treated Luke like their own since day one,” she said.

Luke says: “I wanted to marry Ruby because I knew she was the one from the first time we met.”

“She makes me happy and shaped me into the man I am today. She’s taught me life lessons that I probably would have never learned, and helped me to become more patient and a better communicator – even when I had no clue how to communicate.

“Ruby is my soul mate, my best friend and the love of my life. Why wouldn’t I want to marry her?”

One of the highlights of her wedding day for Ruby was seeing Luke become emotional when her father Jason was walking her towards him.

“That may sound bad, but Luke has a tough exterior so it was lovely to see it all tear away. For me, it meant he cared.”

Ruby put her cultural skills into practice at the ceremony, performing to a popular island song which Luke appreciated as his wife was welcoming him into Cook Islands culture.

The Wests will soon return to New Zealand, where they are in the process of renovating a home to move into in a couple of months.

Their plans are to work, study and save towards a bigger home and create a steady income for their future.

There are no plans for kids in the near future, instead they want to travel and have fun for a while.