Texting first costs nothing. Waiting for them to go first can cost the friendship.

Friendships often fade through symmetry rather than conflict. Both people are waiting, both are reading the silence as disinterest, and neither is actually busy. Going first costs you a message and a few seconds of feeling exposed. Waiting costs the friendship, slowly enough that neither of you notices it happening.

Think of two people you have drifted from and send each a short message today, with no apology for the gap and no preamble. Something specific works better than checking in: a reference to the thing you both liked. If one does not come back, you still spent almost nothing.